DEAREST CROWN
The Path To Going Down (Lather Records)
Reviewed by Erick Mertz

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Listening to Dearest Crown's newest album The Path to Going Down is like that much needed affirmation of everything good that's happening somewhere, anywhere you can look forward to being at any time. Few albums can claim such recuperative powers upon first listen; fewer successfully balance between the vulnerability of a jaded lover and a longshoreman's pomposity contained here. Hailing from Portland Oregon's fertile Americana scene, Dearest Crown is that armada's five man musical clipper ship, the one built for speed.

While 2002's effort A Single Star, Bigger than the Universe contained some of the truly glimmering songs of that year in local music, The Path to Going Down is stronger, a more playful and complete album. The variety here, from foot stomping maritime send-ups like "The Last Great Shipwreck" and "Devil's Peak Lookout," to astoundingly simple ballads like "I'll Be OK," makes it sure to be one that never grows tiresome. The recordings fly by the seat of their pants, but somehow remain intact on the strength of Sean Harrasser's vocals. He's young, but sounds long in the tooth, like someone who spends their spare time telling tales. He is the complete package, with a range of characters between drunken pub lothario to heartbroken troubadour. Harrasser's not a lone talent as his backing - particularly Leif Webb's cello and accordion accompaniments - makes Dearest Crown that secret local gem of a band that threatens to be so much more.

[Pick this up at CDBaby.]

© 2004 - Erick Mertz