Singer-songwriter Gary Levitt has a solid take on the balance between rural naif and urban hipster that's at the root of the current alt-folk scene, but for all the acoustic guitars and simple musical settings of the third Setting Sun album, he's no Devendra Banhart type of modern flower child. Levitt (who basically is Setting Sun, although Erica Quitzow, adds cello, violin, drums and vocals) has far more in common with Destroyer's Dan Bejar: the 11 songs on Children of the Wild use not only vintage psych and folk-rock as musical touchstones, but the melodramatic likes of Scott Walker and Hunky Dory-era David Bowie, as well as sophisticated '80s college rockers like Prefab Sprout and the Go-Betweens. Moods range from the giddy, strummy pop rush of "Overjoyed" to the whispered tension of "Not Waste," with room for the folkish delicacy of "Morning Song" as well as the trippy edge of the Beck-like single "No Devil Me No More," with the boyish charm of Levitt's vocals and the inventive melodicism of his tunes tying the whole thing together. Children of the Wild may not fit easily into any currently fashionable genre descriptors, but it's definitely worth a listen. - All Music Guide
hook-laden indie-pop probed by twizzling sounds, lashing cellos, driving beats & a voice with words slowly tasted before being released.- parasitesandsycophants
"These tunes have more hooks than a tackle box." - Daily Freeman
"Pop with its edgily tense cortege of suspense straining strings." - Losing Today
"There's a little Bowie in there, and some Elliott Smith, but who cares about comparisons?
Setting Sun writes and plays great songs." - New Times
"The writing would have made it stand out either way." - Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette
"It kind of made me feel like I was 15 again and listening to a new Sub Pop band." - Impact Press
"Spacey, thoughtful, and -- dare I say it -- pretty." -Space City Rock
"Setting Sun is good, and good for you." - News Observer (NC)
"Levitt wails with toned-down tinges of Kurt Cobain's emptiness and Elliot Smith's pain." - West Coast Performer
"It's urgent in a kind of methodical and knowing way." -Tasty Fanzine (UK)
"An intimate lyrical style but expansive music, embracing driving beats, soothing instrumental interludes and aggressive rhythms." - Eugene Weekly
"Like a never-ending treasure hunt. Each song evolves to some completely different end without losing its original idea." - Boise Weekly
"With his voice a biting whisper and guitar work that's quietly emphatic and shrewd as it picks its way around the fretboard, Setting Sun's Gary Levitt has more than a little Elliott Smith in him. We're talking old Elliott Smith here, i.e., the sad, intimate and cloudy days of Roman Candle." - Willamette Weekly (Portland)
"Maybe he’s just an independent thinker who’s onto something." - Las Cruces Pulse
Thanks so much for the compliment guys, also for stopping in to say hi we really appreciate it when people take the time to actually stop by the page to say what up!!!
Inmiddels zijn 200 boeken verkocht en de pers is positief over Muziekreis door het Berlijn van toen en nu - van jazzhel tot technohemel.
Duits.de: ‘Ik vind dat Jonker … die klus heel goed geklaard heeft.’ ‘Het boek is over de gehele linie - algemene geschiedenis en muziekgeschiedenis - toegankelijk geschreven en bevat talrijke anekdotes.’ ‘Alles wat langs moet komen komt dan ook langs: de jazzgekte van de jaren '20, de Schlagers van de jaren '30 en '40, Rock'n Roll, Punk, Techno - alles.’
Festivalinfo.nl: '... geeft het boek een zeer goed en uitgebreid beeld van de muziekcultuur in Berlijn.'
FONK: 'Al met al is het werkje een leuke alternatieve reisgids voor wie binnenkort naar de Duitse hoofdstad gaat. Kort, krachtig en vlot opgepend.'
Trajectum: '... is vooral voor Berlijn- én muziekfans een must voor in de trein richting Berlin Hauptbahnhof (waar je na het lezen van de eerste pagina's meteen op wilt stappen).'
Het boek is t/m 31 juli met korting online te bestellen voor EUR 14,-. Daarna geldt de normale winkelprijs van EUR 15,95. En ook in de winkels gaat het hard. Velvet Music moest al bij bestellen, nadat ze uitverkocht waren. Bestel jouw exemplaar nu!
ha! Thanks for the heads up! I got rid of that other girls comment. So yeah we would love to play good ole NY, you guys should come to Mpls sometime as well! Awesome music video by the way, did you guys make that yourselves?
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