Reverieme

Reverieme (Louise Connell) has progressed(?) from the slightly eccentric practice of playing the guitar with her nose to the more conventional two handed approach that now includes banjo and ukulele. Maybe the nosey efforts will come to light one day but for the time being we have this exquisite collection of songs.

The first reaction after an initial listen is that this is a folk project, being acoustic throughout. However, only Golem really has all those Traditional music tropes coming to the fore. Elsewhere there are elements of classical guitar, mixed with Country in Datun, while Nocturnal Babe’s ukulele and judicious use of piano is delightful and maybe more towards the midnight hour.

The EP is minimal in concept, and sparse in production though is not by any means impenetrable or cold. On the contrary the haunting Plankton, on which Ms Connell gives an outstanding vocal performance (as she does throughout the EP to fair), tugs at the heartstrings. Venus too is engaging but from a slightly jollier side. Slow burner Outside is one of those delights that takes a little more time to get it’s feelers in but once there is lodged for life, blame those strings.

Being harsh, it doesn’t deviate too far from the template set by opener Venus, and at seven songs is pushing the definition of an EP right to the limit. But the latter is just this writer’s bug bear while the former is a very minor matter as the quality of the songs and performance are of the highest order. There's also the hint that some of these songs can be adapted for a full band and that's an enticing prospect.