Trummors: Moorish Highway

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In an era seemingly defined by bands from Brooklyn, Trummors, who now hail from comparatively sleepy Woodstock, are anything but your typical NY duo. Songwriter and vocalist Anne Cunningham and multi-instrumentalist David Lerner (Ted Leo and The Pharmacists) left the bustling streets of Greenpoint for the lush landscape of The Catskills. Originally formed in 2010, Anne and David relocated to the storied upstate arts community, which is renown for legendary musicians such as Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, The Band, and numerous others. Their rich and floral sound elegantly reflects their geography with a subtle nod to those who’ve preceded them and influenced their sound.

Moorish Highway retains the folk/country style of their 2012 debut Over And Around the Clove (Ernest Jenning) while refining the infusion of psychedelic undertones in tracks like “Vigil,” “Autumn Gold,” and “Pessimistic Bluebird,” which feature the delicate drone of Anne’s harmonium. Moorish Highway deftly provides the listener with a balance between these pastoral tracks with upbeat sanguine jaunts like “Bogus Bruce” and “Strangers From Now On.”

Laying somewhere in between are the twangy guitar licks, heavily reverbed tambourine, and occasional harmonica riffs on “Always Seems to Rain,” which undoubtedly send some listeners back to pop classics from The Byrds, The Mamas and the Papas, or the like. Then there is the beautiful cover of Gordon Lightfoot’s 1966 Early Morning Rain, on which Anne and David’s harmonies smooth out Lightfoot’s herky-jerky vocal style. Is it heresy to say I prefer the Trummors’ version? So be it, because I do.

Rating: 9.2/10
MP3: Trummors “Always Seems to Rain”
Buy: iTunes

Check out their latest video for Vigil.

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