25 September 2010

Good Night & Good Morning - ep (2009, Orchid Collective / 2010 Own Records)

Good Night & Good Morning is an ambient indie duo from Champaign, Illinois, formed by Ryan Brewer and Pat Elifritz with the occasional help of a few other musicians.

This is, apparently, their third ep and the closest reference I might think of is Coastal. They share this same type of melancholic softness and kindness. It is also possible to relate them to the quietest and more intimate pieces of music Gregor Samsa, L'Altra or Khale released on their albums.


Soft whispered vocals, ethereal keyboards line, sensitive and intimate guitars and a slowness to put you asleep, Good Night & Good Morning offers here a dreamy EP. They have a slowcore background as you are never far from the quiet and contemplative atmospheres bands like Spokane, Red House Painters, Low and Idaho, even if they don't take into account the tension inherent to the genre, which is explained partially by the absence of bass and drums.

This is a quite sleep-inducing EP and the opening track, "Sister", flirts with perfection. It just takes six minutes to Good Nigh & Good Morning to convince you that they are haunted and can explore this area between light and darkness. At the end of the song you wish they will be able to fully embrace this direction.  The next track, "Ocean view", is an ambient drone instrumental, like a breath after the preceding intensity.

"Sleep Green" is as delicate reverie almost innocuous but comfortable and highly pleasant. "Wine" is more of the same water with poetic field recordings of the rain, it's highly sensitive but not as shivering as the first track was,  not enough tension to transcend the purpose and create waves at the still surface.

The last track explores a more climatic direction and you feel a certain distortion even if finally "Wallflower" never breaks the ice like "Sister" did. 

Good Night & Good Morning is a really nice band, but sometimes to gentle and comfortable, and this EP gives me the hope they will be able to put themselves at risk on their next release. And "Sister" really shows that it depends on them, to the capacity of offering their core.





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