BEND BEYOND – WOODSIST

The Brooklyn boys in Woods have released another solid indie folk offering. Bend Beyond is their seventh consecutive album in seven years. After almost a decade together, Woods has managed to conscientiously conceive the perfect combination of expected melody and innovative harmony.

Although the sound is nothing short of pop, there is a darker vibe about this album.

Frontman Jeremy Earl, who also runs the band’s label, Woodsist, keeps the songs intimate with his soft falsetto while the haunting guitars place the instrumentals in a far off place, somewhere just out of reach.

The ’60s sunshine sound might disguise that Earl is singing, “it’s so fucking hard,” making Bend Beyond gut-grabbing melancholy at its finest.

An organic simplicity comes through on “It Ain’t Easy,” as the track is a prefect mash up of warbling guitar riffs and earnest vocals.

As a whole, this album and band bring something fresh and creative to the Brooklyn folk sound.

Meighan Donaldson