SONG OF THE DAY (#194)

'on the aventine,' by damon and naomi

damon krukowski and naomi yang have been making their own brand of pastoral folk rock ever since the tragic demise of their previous band, galaxie 500 (damon says that while he and dean wareham have recently started emailing each other after years of taciturnity, don't expect a galaxie 500 reunion anytime soon, meaning never).

it's been a couple of years since their previous album, 'the earth is blue,' and those years, it seems, have brought a little pep to the band. though it's still a quintessentially damon and naomi album (damon's wonderful vocals, naomi's walking basslines, lots of reverb, and acoustic guitars a-plenty), the addition of some good old-fashioned jazz brass (namely the sax and trumpet, as evidenced on 'on the aventine') gives their trademark sound a new depth and expressivity and sounds so at home that you wonder why they've not done it before.

it's been about twenty years since galaxie 500 first hit the scene and damon and naomi, once they rhythm section of one of the most influential bands of the last quarter century, have gracefully embraced mid-adulthood, crafting songs so lush and lovely that as i get closer to that stage, i'm feeling much better about spending some time there.

damon and naomi are set to release their newest album, 'within these walls,' sept 25 on their own label, 20/20/20. check it out.

��� damon and naomi: on the aventine
��� damon and naomi: lilac land
��� damon and naomi: the mirror phase [from the l.p. 'damon and naomi with ghost'].