The new album by Lay Low Moon is called On This Day Last Year. It is an interesting title for an album, and made me wonder where I was last year at this time and the year before that. In this day and age of “on this day” in Facebook land, much of the mystery of our memories has been removed. Still, I have no idea where I was on this day last year. The year before I was attending the last Fred & Toody show I’d ever attend (of Dead Moon fame). Fred Cole got cancer in 2017 and died late in the year. So, I was thinking about that today – I had no idea that the show I was at would be the last time I’d see them. I wonder what I was thinking when I took pictures of them and took in the music? Gone with the winds of time I suppose. So, we’ve established that I love the title of Lay Low Moon’s new album. How about the music?
It seems that I tend to review the new releases by Boston’s Lay Low Moon in the Autumn – it is fitting as this feels like rainy day music for rainy day people. The rainy season hits hard and fast when it arrives in the Pacific Northwest and I find myself reaching for my favorite records in those dark and dreary days. The basic template for On This Day Last Year is folk rock laments seeped in emotion – it works stunningly well throughout the course of the 12 song record.
Late July opens the record with a stunning tale of heartbreak “I was yours, for a little while / or so I thought, or so I thought”. The title track is an acoustic lament that is quite affecting in its delivery. “and we carry our shame in our hands / and unlit cigarettes in the sand”. Shadow On My Ceiling has more of a full band feel to it – think of the softer moments of Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young for an idea of the sound. A slight twang in parts makes for an interesting juxtaposition. Lyrically, we are dealing with the big questions of life “I am human, I am durable / I am hopeless / hear me roar”. Thru & Thru ends the record on a somewhat hopeful note, an acoustic catharsis of the soul. “I don’t have much more to say / ‘Cause I’ve been bruised and I’ve been battered / and I don’t know if I get through to you, Ann / But I just hope and I pray that you follow through”.
All in all, it is another winning record from Lay Low Moon. You can pick up the record here. A perfect accompaniment for those rainy days and nights during the Fall and Winter.
Verdict: A welcome return
For Fans of: Mojave 3, Neil Young, The Essex Green, Jeffrey Gaines, Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams
Tracks:
- Late July
- All Affirming
- Second Floor Apartment
- Knew
- On This Day Last Year
- Merideth
- Much Obliged
- Shadow On My Ceiling
- Without You
- The Bottle
- Simple Man
- Thru & Thru
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=2033793561 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=3792853619]