Low in the Sky: We Are All Counting On You, William
Abandon Building

At its MySpace page, Akron-based trio Low In The Sky cites Grizzly Bear, Caribou, Clark, and Goldmund as current influences, and We Are All Counting On You, William suggests that a fusion of all four would be a pretty accurate distillation of the band's sound. On this sophomore follow-up to 2005's Dear Birds, Joe Minadeo, Corey Farrow, and Pat Mcnulty squeeze thirteen vibrant folk-electronic and post-rock instrumentals into thirty-eight minutes. A versatile creature, Low In The Sky is as comfortable kicking out hip-hop-flavoured jams (“O! Zark! How You Make Me Roll”) and muscular post-rock (“Dialogue with a Shadow”) as expansive soundscapes (“Animal Expansion,” “Horton”)—perhaps the group's originating gig as a backing band for local MCs partially accounts for its stylistic range. Highlights include “And Snow [While Surfacing],” where a mini-orchestra of cello, vibes, banjo, guitar, and piano comes together in blissful harmony, and “New Amsterdam 1672, New York 1933,” where arcade melodies breezily glide over a crisp hip-hop base. With little fuss, Low In The Sky crafts rich mini-soundtracks of bucolic and sometimes mesmerizing character ( “The Pursuit of the Giant Squid,” “Community Center Shuffle”) and makes it sound easy in the process.

August 2007