Now

Album review

Although his debut is an EP that's only five songs and less than 20 minutes long, Daniel Carlson brings a unique lifetime of experience into his supremely mellow retro-pop dreamscape -- which clearly draws on the influences of everyone from Brian Wilson and Belle & Sebastian to Elliott Smith. The Chicago native was part of the Josh Clayton-Felt experience in the early days, then played with N.Y.C. bands like Giant Mums and Strange Attractor before getting discouraged by the business. But the musical muse didn't stay down for long, as Carlson -- who plays guitar, piano, bass, Wurlitzer, and organ -- achieves what he believes is "the record I've wanted to make since I was 15 years old." From the gently symphonic "Listen" to the lushly harmonic contemplation of "My Old Room," it's trippy stuff all around, with soothing ambience swirling around a pop-folk sensibility. The similarly thoughtful, piano-driven "Tina" is something of a throwback to the soothing sound John Lennon was after on "Across the Universe." "Gold" is a too-short Eastern-tinged new agey instrumental that perfectly captures the EP's overall cool vibe. Carlson seems to have spent a lot on the CD insert design for such a short little project, with photos from urban life that capture unique moments in time. Hopefully, he'll explain the source of the esoteric package on future, more fully developed projects.
© Jonathan Widran /TiVo