Cornflower Blue Review in Keys and Chords
Keys and Chords - 5 out of 5 stars (Philip Verhaege)Cornflower Blue, where else did we hear that play on words? Oh right, it was one of the favorite colors of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer. It’s a shade of azure, light of color with a little green in it. Just like the album that we just received: sober, modest and honestly lovely. I have to admit that I never heard about this band before, of which I am ashamed, a lot! This Americana/folk duo from Canada is proudly introducing its second album. The very accessible “Run down the rails” will surely will appeal to a wider audience than its predecessor “Infant Songs”, which already earned them a bunch of fans. The album was recorded in a home studio and is surrounded by a unique sound. Singer Theresa McInerney and Trevor May (guitar, mandolin) are accompanied by Deanne McDougall (Violin), Dasha Korycan (Bass) and Drummer Rob MacLeod.
The space which Theresa and May created for the backing is very subtle. The self produced instruments add a lot of value to the 8 beautiful tracks. The timbre in Theresa’s voice reminds us of Nathalie Merchant of 10.000 Maniacs. And we happen to be huge fans of Nathalie. The simplicity, shyness, the character and soberness that is in Theresa’s vocal talents gave us goosebumps too. The fluent guitar solos are pleasantly subtle, even though the opening song and title track has actual zydeco influences. “Cold Lake” is upbeat, but “Car in the Parking lot” and “Mr. Air Traffic controller” are melancholic rock songs. “Morning with the Young Man Revisited” is folk-ish with inspiring mandolin arrangements. Finally, the album includes a very rare cover version of “Fisherman Blues”, previously made world famous by the Waterboys.
Cornflower Blue have smashed into the big international music scene!