Itty-Bitty Review: Hello Night - Kesang Marstrand

Unlike any other lullaby album you'll hear this year, Hello Night is the creation of New York-based singer-songwriter Kesang Marstrand. It's buoyed by Marstrand's simple songs, spare accompaniment, and her delicate, beautiful voice. Especially her voice, which is clear and just about perfect for an album like this. Many of the songs -- all original -- on the album take inspiration from the natural world, from the opening tracks "Dandelion" and "Carry On Crickets" to songs like "Cocooned In My Blanket," in which the snuggled child thinks of becoming a butterfly. (I also particularly liked the placement of "All the Little Children," about all the adventures the not-yet-sleeping child could have with the singer, at the end of the album.) If you listen to the 37-minute album repeatedly in the light of day (an occupational hazard of reviewing music), you may tire of the relatively narrow range of song styling and guitar accompaniment. (One of the most welcome tracks is "Rest," which unlike the other songs, features Marstrand accompanying herself on kalimba instead of guitar.) But that's not a huge concern with lullaby albums, designed as they are to be listened to in the background (or subconsciously after falling asleep), for which radical changes in style are not to be wished for. The album is obviously most appropriate for kids age 0 through 4 and their weary caregivers. You can listen to samples here and here. Families who have found a spot in their record collection for the mellow music of Frances England and Renee & Jeremy should give Hello Night a spin. It's an album you could spend many nights with. Recommended.

Review: We Are The Not-Its! - The Not-Its

One of the signs of the maturation of the kids music genre is that there are more debut albums with a sense of confidence. Rather than tentative steps into what might be an unfamiliar world, more folks seem to have a very clear understanding of what their sound is and how their image might support it. Most confident perhaps are Seattle's The Not-Its, who almost from the beginning they burst onto the web had a clear idea of their sound (finely honed alterna-pop, generally), lyrical aim (generally direct though not without the occasional knowing adult aside), and look (women dresses, men shirts with ties). And nothing on their debut We Are the Not-Its! suggests they've had any second thoughts about those things. From the get-go, the band fires on all cylinders. Starting an album with your own "theme song" is often a dicey move, but "We Are The Not-Its" is one of the two or three best theme songs ever (bonus points for the nifty pun "It's only got one eye / And don't forget to dot it"). "When I'm Five" has a hook that could pull in Moby Dick; you'll probably want to play "Let's Birthday" more than just once a year. Though the songs tend toward alternative pop, they're perfectly willing to slow things down a bit, such as on the sweet "Helicopter" or the country "Dressin' Up." The voice of Sarah Shannon (who was the lead singer of '90s band Velocity Girl and who takes most of the lead vocals here) definitely is a big asset to the band as well. There are points at which I thought the lyrics veered somewhat oddly between the too simplistic and too aimed-at-the-parents. "When I'm Five" features the lines "When you're five / They say there's so much to know / But I'll stay sharp as a tack or a whip or whatever / Until I figure out the status quo" and "I love my school / My teachers rule." (Hey, I love that first line, but I'm thinkin' that goes waaaay over the head of a four-year-old.) I think my favorite songs are the ones that don't necessarily impart simple life lessons (sharing is good, baths are good) but are just stories, such as "Shadows." But it's probably a credit to the songs themselves that those simple life lesson songs are pretty darn listenable, too. The album is best for kids ages 3 through 7. You can hear the songs from the 30-minute album at their own page. So, yeah, this album rocks. Families who are fans of Ralph's World, Justin Roberts, Lunch Money, or the Hipwaders shouldn't hesitate to get We Are the Not-Its as its combination of crunchy guitar-filled hooks and very kid-focused lyrics should prove very popular with that set. And it's just their first album -- can't wait to hear what comes next. Definitely recommended.

Review in Brief: Somersault Season - Laura Freeman

Laura Freeman's Somersault Season arrives a couple years after its demos were completed and a full four years after its excellent predecessor, Color Wheel Cartwheel (review), an album which I still play around the house, no small feat given the constant influx of material. Like Cartwheel, Season is a concept album, except instead of colors, it's about the passing of the seasons. (TMBG can now cross Here Comes Seasons off their future sequels list.) Each season gets its own foreign-language introduction (a la the colors on Cartwheel) and three season-appropriate songs. As opposed to its predecessor, the songs here are more interactive, meaning that your kids (and you) will enjoy it more if you move. Stomp along with "My Brother's a Monster," shake along to "Can You Shake It?," or dance along with the western swing of "1, 2, 3, 4." Generally, the music takes a folk/bluegrass approach, aided especially by producer Mike West's mandolin and banjo work. Freeman's sly sense of humor is more prevalent live, but occasionally breaks through here on songs like the droll "Look in a Book." The songs here are targeted very much at the kindergarten-and-under crowd (ages 2-5). You can hear samples at the album's CD Baby page. I'd also recommend Freeman's notes on the lyrics and activities. Clearly my appreciation of Somersault Season is hampered somewhat by my affinity for Color Wheel Cartwheel, and while I'd recommend Cartwheel for an introduction to Laura Freeman over this new album (particularly as a pure listening experience), I like Somersault Season quite a bit, too. It's an especially good music-and-movement CD, heads and shoulders above most in that particular subgenre. Recommended.

Review: John and Mark's Children's Record - John Upchurch and Mark Greenberg

At the risk of over-simplification, I think there are five kinds of kids music albums: 1. Explicitly educational music (for the most part, left undiscussed here), 2. Renditions of traditional kids songs (e.g., Raffi, early Laurie Berkner), 3. Rock/pop/folk songs with kid-focused lyrics (Ralph's World, Justin Roberts, later Laurie Berkner, tons more), 4. Music geared at the whole family simultaneously (Dan Zanes, Elizabeth Mitchell). 5.... Well, the fifth type looks a bit askew at the kids music genre. If it doesn't quite subvert the genre, it doesn't quite buy into it, either. They Might Be Giants, who could easily fit into the rock/pop/folk category above, fit here, as do albums from folks like Duplex and the Quiet Two. You can also lump in every album that attempts to fit the kids song peg into an adult hole (traditional kids songs... done in electronica!) or the adult peg into the kids music hole (ahem, I'm looking at you, Rockabye Baby). I wouldn't want a kids music library consisting of nothing but albums from this category, but their quirkiness is a welcome change, even from nothing but excellent albums in the other categories. For those of you looking for an album in that fifth category, I can't commend John and Mark's Children's Record to you highly enough. The album is the creation of John Upchurch and Mark Greenberg, who played together in the Coctails many years ago and now find themselves each father to three kids. The album was inspired, of course, by life with their kids, but the result sounds like little else you will hear this year. "The Lawnmower" kicks off the album with a kid's lament that he might be trapped inside the house all summer long since the grass has grown so high before chugging into a country-folk tune which will have you humming "the lawnmower goes off / and the lawnmower goes on" and the killer couplet "I can rest well assured / of a lawn well-manicured." It's the kids music album equivalent of "you had me at 'hello'." From there the album moves into "A Counting Error," which beyond its lyrical subversion (to tell you more would ruin the surprise) has funky "Mahna Mahna"-style vocalizing, whistling, and sax interspersed. I can't think of a more striking kids song all year. "Pat, the Alligator Lady" is an odd little song about a lady who, Greenberg says, ran a rescue shelter for odd animals in an 80-year-old Victorian house. "The Elephant Leads the Way" is a poppy banjo-accented number followed up by "People Have Good Reasons," which sounds like it lost its way from another album made just for adults -- the spoken-word carousel tune is amusing, but it's the album's one false step as kids'll probably be mystified ("It is very VERY important / So precautions that they've taken are all warranted / And accepted / as a rule of law"). And on it goes. I have no idea what the titular shoes are of "Honey Boots," and the lyrics consist primarily of "I've got my honey boots on," but that's one of the joys of this collection -- not everything is spelled out. "Colors" is about, yes, colors, but it's as if Shel Silverstein wrote a poem about colors and asked Sufjan Stevens to write song to along with it. The album mellows as it draws to a close, ending with a lullaby ("Until the Dawn") and a slow instrumental ("In My Blue House"). The album is about 35 minutes long and most appropriate for kids ages 2 through 7; you can download a couple tracks -- including the sublime "A Counting Error" -- here. You can download the entire album from iTunes or eMusic. But I should mention the album packaging (designed by former Coctail member Archer Prewitt) is beautiful and well worth the additional shipping cost (the album costs the same in physical format as through iTunes). As you can tell by now, I think this album is fabulous. It is a bit odd perhaps, but I've figured out over time that what separates the great "odd" albums from the annoying ones is love -- that people love the genre and the kids in their lives and they're making music borne out of their own musical and personal experiences. John and Mark's Children's Record reflects that love in spades. It's one of my favorite albums of the year. Highly recommended.

Review in Brief: Family Photograph - The Dreyer Family Band

Giving Family Photograph, the first album from the bi-coastal Dreyer Family Band, a brief review is hard, because you're not likely to hear a kids music album more stuffed with so many feelings this year. The product of the families of Matt and Craig Dreyer, the album gives voice to all of the good times and bad times most families go through. In many ways, it's completely typical family music territory -- lots of songs about love and creativity and animals playing music ("Totem Party," the closest thing the album has to a traditional folk song on its collection of 17 originals). But a few other songs serve as counterweight to the lovey-dovey stuff, and make those songs' emotions feel earned. When was the last time you heard a song (from a kids' point of view) talk about wanting to hit someone, especially a sibling or a friend, but that's exactly what the Johnny Cash-styled "Mad" covers. Or the '60s soul of "You Get What You Get," which adds music to all those things parents say (or want to say) to their child on those highly-stressed days ("It's a get what I got hope you like it day / If you don't just keep it to yourself today"). The music covers a wide range of styles, but has its locus in funky soul music. It's like a long-lost kids album from 35 years ago. It felt a little long for my tastes, though if you asked me exactly which 4 songs I'd drop to make it a trim 33 minutes rather than the 43 minutes it actually is, I'd be at a loss to do so. The album will probably be most appreciated by kids ages 3 through 8, though the real target audience is those kids' parents -- if the kids like it, that's a bonus. You can hear some tracks at the band's website (click on "listen") or samples at the album's CD Baby page. Listening to Family Photograph feels a little bit like looking through a family album of highly personal photos; sometimes the photos are fuzzy or seem to have meaning that escapes the casual listener, but at times these snapshots have captured something magical. Recommended.

Review: Family Time - Ziggy Marley

I'll start this review of Family Time, the first kids music album from Ziggy Marley, by saying that I'm not a big reggae fan. So, when I put my review copy into the CD player my expectations were low. Saying that the album exceeded my expectations, then, would be somewhat like damning with faint praise. So let me put it this way: Family Time is a lot of fun, regardless of what music your family likes. Unsurprisingly, there's a pleasant, laid-back vibe to the album which is one of its greatest strengths. "I Love You Too," for example, with Marley's mom Rita and his sister Cedella, won't change the world but its simple groove will probably put a smile on your face. "Take Me To Jamaica" features a fun duet between Marley and reggae legend Toots Hibbert. And my favorite moment on whole CD might just be when Marley's daughter joins in on the singing on the title track. It certainly isn't polished, but it's exactly that feeling of recording amongst friends and family that takes this album so far. As for the rest of the guest stars, some of it works, some of it doesn't so much. Generally, I liked the female singers -- it's hard to go wrong with two of the best voices in the kids music genre, and Elizabeth Mitchell and Laurie Berkner don't disappoint on their tracks. The male guest stars, not so much -- it's not that Willie Nelson and Paul Simon are bad, just that they don't really add much to the track. And the placement of not one but two Jamie Lee Curtis narrations (one Marley's, one hers) back-to-back at the end of the disk is just plain odd. (Interspersed earlier in the disk, and it might have worked...) The 45-minute album might be targeted to kids ages 3 through 7, but I think a lot of adult fans will find the album eminently listenable as well. You can find samples throughout the internet, the title track on his Myspace page. Ziggy Marley has said that he hoped to make Family Time an album which could be passed down from generation to generation. And while I don't know if it's a timeless classic, there's no doubt that it's worthy of some repeat play. Definitely recommended.