In late 2023, The Felice Brothers released their finest studio album to date, Asylum On The Hill. Confoundingly, the upstate New York natives released it with virtually no notice, exclusively on Bandcamp.
The resulting exposure for the music–or conversely, the lack thereof–may explain why Valley of Abandoned Songs appears, with some fanfare, on Conor Oberst’s new record label. The Felices’ debut for Million Stars arrives in the form of thirteen tracks, primarily from sessions for the band’s exceptional 2019 album, Undress, as well as for their most recent release.
All the recordings were captured live in an 1870s church with the current lineup of the group. This quartet of Brothers–siblings Ian on guitar/lead vocals and James on keyboards/vocals, plus Jesske Hume on bass and Will Lawrence on drums–has solidified a chemistry the likes of which previous personnel only ever flashed in fleeting moments on their previous albums (and live shows).
As on the haunting opener, “Crime Scene Queen,” falsetto background harmonies add to the eerie feel arising from lyrics that turn aphorisms inside out, leaving both ‘pretty in pink’ and ‘license to kill’ with ominous overtones impossible to ignore. But such a dark air belies the bright electric piano on “Flowers By The Roadside;” that particular instrumental element stands out in the arrangement because of its contrast with the dry strumming of acoustic guitar from Ian and Lawrence’s brushes on and around his kit.
Then there’s Ian’s command of the English language in “New York By Moonlight.” Delivered in the author’s customary world-weary tone, phrases such as’ a terrifyingly eloquent world’ gain an ambiguity that works to their benefit; ultimately, it doesn’t matter if the song is a quiet celebration or a paean to despair since the skeletal musicianship—with Hume’s bass as the backbone—supports both interpretations equally well.
Disengaged as the performance of “Younger As The Days Go By” sounds, at least on its surface, it would seem to live up to its title. But the wordless singing at its end is an expression of gaiety reinforced with the whistling that commences “So Long John;” one of its few instances where the elder Felice sibling’s vocal debt to Dylan surfaces, this affectation seems purposeful, as if to garner listeners’ attention.
Still, it’s a gesture no more noticeable than the way the singer’s voice wavers at the outset of “Black Is My True Love’s Hair.” The surety of the accompaniment, especially the melodious acoustic piano (again), points up the hesitation: none of these baker’s dozen numbers is inordinately short, yet each passes with such seeming brevity that Valley Of Abandoned Songs emanates a distinctly dreamlike quality.
Cross-references of images like those in the refrain of “Birdies” accentuate the deceptive impact of the music, too. Amplifying the atmosphere, a comparably reflective mood emerges from “Tomorrow Is Just A Dream Away,” too, a delicate effect the foursome manages to sustain through LP’s end in the dual form of “Let Me Ride Away with the Horsemen” (of the apocalypse?) and “Be A Papa.”
As that conclusion suggests, the Felice Brothers continue to draw on history, musical and otherwise, while simultaneously anticipating the future and contemplating the present. No wonder this eccentric ensemble continues to make albums like Valley of Abandoned Songs that reaffirm the notion great music is timeless.
