I am immediately struck by the awesome j-card that accompanies this tape. A beautiful full color professionally done offering. Very nice, but on to the tape…
The tape opens with “Give Thanks In A Special Way” which, if I might time travel, reminds me a great deal of the instrumental pieces on Paul MCartney’s self-titled debut solo album. That’s a good thing and a unique sound for a band to adopt. As it turns out, the remainder of the tracks have a like feel which makes for a very distinctive sound for Hour. Think pop/rock with just a dash of ambient.
Other highlights include the opus seven-minute-plus “At The Bar Where You Literally Saved Me From Fatal Heartbreak” and the closer ”Chantal.” It must be noted that while some of the song titles are marathon length, there are no vocals on the span of the tape. I must give props to Hour for assembling a full-length album of instrumentals and keeping it interesting.
Also of special note is the production, which while clean and audibly legible, has a crust of rawness to it that I find lends itself to the proceedings. All songs are written by Michael Cormier who also plays guitar and is aided by Jason Calhan on synth and violin, Lauren Costello on cello, Matt Fox on viola, Pete Gif on drums, Evangeline Krajjewski on synth, Abi Reimold on guitar and Dan Wriggins on accordion. The album was recorded and mixed by Francis Lyons and produced by the band and Mr. Lyons. The cover painting I referenced earlier was done by Sarah Jurkofsky and the photography by Abi Reimold.
The album is available on limited-edition cassette (with download) through Bandcamp.
https://lilytapesanddiscs.bandcamp.com/album/anemone-red
-- Robert Richmond