Tuesday, December 19, 2006

TRACK 14: CAROL


CAROL by The Reigning Sound.

Carol appears on "Home For Orphans", an album that was a big hit here this year. "Home For Orphans" consists of outtakes and rarities (hence the name) from the group The Reigning Sound, who've already made a brief appearance as the backing group for the forthcoming (Shangri-La) Mary Weiss's debut solo album. When "Home For Orphans" came out, Greg Cartwright, the bandleader, said,

The thing that kind of pulls them all together is the fact that most of them are ballads, and most of them are slower songs, moodier songs, lilting country-type things.
That's certainly true of Carol. To be honest, it sounds to us almost like a demo of a louder, more urgent track, but first the band wanted to get a feel for the song. The arrangement is minimal, the playing is relaxed and unambitious. The singer wants Carol but he's not sure he wants anyone to know about it. It feels 2 a.m.

On a local note, Carol marks a minor but still sad milestone. Home for Orphans was recommended (I think secondhand through Corbett) by the guys at Rocks In Your Head, and it is actually the last CD I bought there before it closed up for good (well, to Williamsburg). The space has been taken over by a realtor, who's selling apartments for $2,600 a month.

LISTEN.

Photo: Downtown, 2003.

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1 comment:

Mayur said...

That is a *magnificent* photo. Guess that first track's photo cover was just a sign of great things to come...