speed of dark

I have to confide that sometimes I just get so filled to the brim with music that, good or bad, my sensibilities get kind of dulled to it all. This never lasts long because I can count on something to come along and zap me like an electric current, knocking the boredom and lethargy away.

The breakthrough this time is a young man named from Rhode Island named Joel Thibodeau who performs under the name of Death Vessel. His second full-length CD, Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us, recorded with longtime producer/collaborator Pete Donnelly of The Figgs, was released just a few of weeks ago.

After I heard the official single, "Bruno's Torso," two days ago, I just immediately bought everything I could find by Death Vessel. Everything about this music hits my taste right on the nose: the unusual and sexually-ambiguous voice, the acoustic guitar and the fiddle finely overlaying the drums, and the thrilling melodies. Oh my, this is the stuff. Like Fleet Foxes, Death Vessel is somehow old-timey and utterly timeless at the same time. I am kicking myself that I just missed seeing Thibodeaux in L.A. only six days ago. Hopefully he'll be back.

Meanwhile, I highly recommend both this new album and the equally amazing Stay Close (2005). You can't go wrong with any of it.
COPYRIGHTED CONTENT HAS BEEN REMOVED
Bruno's Torso from Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us (2008)
Dancers All from The Sound the Hare Heard, a sampler from Kill Rock Stars (2006)
Deep In the Horchata from Stay Close (2005)

Photo by Lisa Corson

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