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Mean Sea Level is the solo project of Brett Barton- house engineer for Cardboard Sangria, bass player for Hummingbiird and various versions of The Singleman Affair, guitarist for the Part Five, team player, method man, etc. Mean Sea Level sparkles with pristine folky pop, labored over for years before we get it. Most of MSL’s creations are Brett playing all the instruments, arranging and mixing, and the results couldn’t be more methodical. Bert Jansch, Nick Drake, and Fleetwood Mac get thrown around a lot, but we hear just as much Johnny Marr and Fairport Convention.
Related: The Singleman Affair, The Part Five
discography
cs013 Mean Sea Level
Mean Sea Level have captured a singular experience on their new, self-titled release; that of lying on cool grass besides the campfire as darkness falls. Staring into the sky, slowly carried upwards by the flickering firelight and entering the night, the stars turn from brilliant diamond points to a vast blanket of luminescent heaven. The band summons these sensations by blending together two distinct traditions in popular folk music: the back-porch authenticity of whiskeysoaked strumming that stretches deep into the American past and has recently manifested itself in artists like Will Oldham and Sam Beam, and the expansively lyrical psychedelic-folk first pioneered by Bert Jansch and Nick Drake. This limited edtion cd comes in a silkscreened folder.
More Details
1. See What You See 3:34
2. Hole In the Floor 3:21
3. Keep Anything 3:03
4. Dreaming of Being 3:14
5. Nothing Less 2:56
6. Somehow, The Rivers Rising 4:04
7. Come Up Sun, Come 2:54
press
“Best of 2008”
Kokomo
“Barton develops a fantastic concept, and the time line of the EP allows us to follow his thought process as he rendezvous with life. ”
Pensatos
“Vocals on “See What You See” are luminous and rich, the guitar sound is recorded beautifully and all the sparse elements added to the mix are just perfect.”
Songs:illinois
“Six tracks, many of them gems, driven by clean vocals, imbued with melancholy, without ever surrendering altogether, and light, warm arpeggios of the guitar.”
losingtoday.com
