Chris Crisci has a Jekyll and Hyde, split personality issue. On one side there is the man that fronts the well established emo band The Appleseed Cast. On the other side you have a mild manner singer/songwriter that fronts the indie folk group Old Canes. The two personalities meet head to head on Old Canes sophomore release Feral Harmonic.
Newton said that no two objects can occupy the same space at the same time. Such is the case with Crisci. He is constantly battling between his experimental emo sound that is so successful in The Appleseed Cast and his down home, back porch stylings. This combination keeps the listener on his heels not knowing what to expect next. Unfortunately this is not a recipe for constant success. The title Feral Harmonic is not just a title but an occurrence. “Sweet” starts out with a slightly distorted acoustic guitar and is soon joined by an unassuming xylophone as it begins to build itself into yet another beautiful track. But after 2:20 the song is cut short and transcends into folk disarray. I can’t completely blame Crisci for this as improve sessions at the end of tracks are an all too common occurrence for punk and emo bands. I’m not a big fan of it then and my standards hold true here as well.
As potentially distracting as “Sweet” could be it isn’t able to take away from tracks such as “Little Courage Bird”, “Trust” and “Flower Faces”. Each one is a folk power ballad of sorts and is an example what can be accomplished with simple and precise song writing. Simple guitar riffs, straight forward lyrics and a few horns can go a long way. Some may argue that horn crescendos in songs, initiated by Neutral Milk Hotel, have run their course. I disagree, keep them coming.
Although Feral Harmonics gets a little rowdy at times it presents itself as a collection of songs that are meant to be heard in an intimate living room full of your closest friends rather than a club filled with complete strangers stuffed shoulder to shoulder. Lyrics like “Watch out for family/Sometimes it’s people that you trust” are charged with emotion as if to say it’s the ones that are close to you that can hurt you the most. Crisci has the ability to write heartfelt and melancholy lyrics without having them seem forced but that are from actual experiences that he has had.
If I was a person that had the capabilities to write songs that people would actually want to listen to this is the type of music that I would write. It gets in touch with my punk rock roots with the simple but effective chords as well as my indie snob side with the acoustic folk edge. This is another album that is going to be tossed around as a potential for my end of the year top ten list.
