Sky Barkers – Extended Play
Cambrian Records – 27 March 2020
Sky Barkers is one of those bands that exist despite itself. Jo and Dan Messore tried hard not to work together. Dan played in a number on contexts, mostly in the jazz world, with Mojo rating one of those efforts in their top ten jazz albums of 2016. On the other hand, Jo grew up singing Celtic folk and Americana with her sisters and parents. Working separately in order to avoid being in a “Carpenters” situation, eventually chucked it all, joined forces and stripped their sound back to the rawest of frameworks, guitar and voice.
Being influenced by everything from folk to world music and classic rock guitar, Extended Play covers a wide range of sound. Reckless features just Jo’s voice and Dan’s electric guitar. The song exists in a world somewhere between jazz and folk, focusing in on Jo’s vocals, guitar shifting effortlessly between worlds, gently rocking in places while never leaving the jazz sphere.
The phasing and treatments of A Prayer support the idea that Sky Barkers don’t really like being categorized. Opening in the foreground, they slide to the back with the entrance of Jo’s impassioned voice. Toned down while Jo sings, the song harkens back to Robert Fripp’s production of The Roches.
Reflecting a somewhat nomadic spirit, Sky Barkers split time between living on the Atlantic side of West Wales and the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, making it even harder to locate touchpoints in their music. They cite a need to “…write, play and sing to feel real. To see what’s between the lines. To call bullshit when needed and proclaim beauty from the high places. This human life is all broken up and Sky Barkers is an invitation to life your head to the sky and howl your wild heart out.”
Reflected in the guitar of Tinker is more of that Costa Rican feel. Short staccato notes and gentle bits of atmosphere establish a framework for Jo’s flights of fancy. Echoes come at you from strange angles that give the piece an exotic edge.
Extended Play creeps up on you revealing a wealth of sounds despite the fact that all the sounds you get come from just Jo’s vocals and Dan’s guitar. Subtly, Sky Barkers cast their spell. Resistance is futile.
Extended Play is out now on Cambrian Records.
Order via Bandcamp https://cambrianrecords.bandcamp.com/album/extended-play
https://www.facebook.com/skybarkers