When acid folk revitalism came back on the front pages of magazines, the key descriptive term was "weird." However, the more artists that emerge, the less that whole "weird" word seems to fit. Surely, Nick Castro is a lot less weird than Syd Barrett, the artist he most seems to emulate. Castro comes across as just a normal guy who loves the ladies, looking for a peaceful country life, who happens to sing some folk music similar to artists from the 60s and 70s.
For Castro's second album, he gets the assistance of Meg Baird of Espers, Josephine Foster, and a host of others adding Renaissance Faire instrumentation like flute, cello, flugelhorn, etc. Actually, Foster and Baird appear only on the resplendent opening track, "Sun Song," which makes the album fully worthy of all the early Pink Floyd comparisons Castro has been getting. After a short opening vocal passage, the song turns into a hazy instrumental meditation, combining persistent cello, bursts of flute and horn melody, and ghostly voices from Foster.
The barer songs, with a smaller supporting cast, are no less successful. Whistle, acoustic guitar, and voice is all that's needed for "Unborn Child" - if the world needs a male couterpart to Marissa Nadler, this song shows Castro is more than able. The song is very standard, old fashioned guitar folk, but it's executed flawlessly. "Guilford" is a bit more of a pop song, reminding me of Leon Russell. The song is the typical folk ode to small town life, adding a powerful chorus against a soft keyboard sheen: "You were the finest woman that I knew, often my thoughts drift back to you."
It's a very effective song, however the lyrics leave a bit to be desired. It's a problem I have with much of the album - while the music is always pleasant and endearing, the words seem to have little weight. Castro always seems to keep his distance from the people he sings about. "My thoughts drift back to you" seems more like a pickup line than true sentiment.
Much of the second half of the album is made up of instrumental songs, sidestepping the problem of lack of lyrical subject matter. However, despite their lengths, only one of these three instrumentals feels like more than a segway. The fluggelhorn on "Waltz For a Little Bird" is beautiful, but moves the style closer to Calexico or the Lonesome Organist, dragging on too long. As is evident in the clever title, "Music for Mijwiz" is also a chance for Castro to showcase an interesting element, the mijwiz. This clarinet-like instrument is of Middle Eastern origin - and sounds it - and is often used in festive celebrations. Castro's use of it equally spirited, but, combined with clattering drums, he seems to bring out darker tones than one might expect.
The last instrumental isn't so much an instrumental, but a 7 minute intro to the most minimal 1 minute folk song, and it's the instrumental that works best. Blending cello, guitar, and horn beautifully with very effective drumming, I'd imagine this is quite beautiful live, building the tension in the room over the seven minute intro before everything drops out, leaving just Castro's voice and guitar for the final part.
