CONTEST: Holler, Wild Rose! Prize Pack

Holler, Wild Rose! - Our Little Hymnal

It's no secret that, although I do enjoy a catchy hook and a simple melody, nothing impresses me more than an artist that has the guts to stretch beyond the masses' collective acceptance of stagnant music forms. New Jersey's Holler, Wild Rose! have released a magnificent album in Our Little Hymnal by doing just that. Admittedly, the album's epic length coupled with its minimalistic approach does require a bit of patience, but the payoff is well worth the effort. Jon Mosloskie's voice has a certain Jeff Buckley-esque strain to it, while the music is reminiscent of early Verve and perhaps a touch of Sigur Rós. What blows me away about the songs on this release is their ability to completely suck you in to the point where you literally get lost in their coherent atmosphere. One example is the album's 12 minute center piece called Poor In Spirit. The track's use of space and controlled (i.e. - not rushed) timing creates an air of grand seraphic tranquility which actually managed to hold my attention, despite its length. Other songs on the album such as Holler, Wild Rose and Mary Lawn Hair are a wonderful mix of cacophony and serenity, shifting back and forth in a way that is challenging, yes, but never jarring. Captive Train includes some Road To Nowhere-type choral harmonies accompanied by in and out psychedelia and uplifting percussion. Sun Vibes is perhaps the poppiest song on the album, perhaps like a bluesy Shins, although it still clocks in at just shy of 7 minutes enabling it the room to breathe, which aids in the song's overall excellence. By the time you get to the album's hushed closer Promise Braid, you've completed a fulfilling ambient journey, a passionate art rock experience that you just can't wait to embark upon again.

As you can tell from my previous reviews of other bands, I've never been one to hide the fact that one of the greatest travesties of the CD age is an artist's need to extend an album's length much longer than necessary. Holler, Wild Rose! is the exception to that thought. Although Our Little Hymnal is over an hour in length, I feel that it never lags, and there are so many ideas flowing throughout the disc, that the length seems just enough to accurately capture the mood.

Our Little Hymnal is actually almost a couple of years old now and the band is preparing to release a new EP entitled The Yarn EP. Based upon the track I've posted below, it sounds like they're taking a slightly more southern blues approach this time around. Hear for yourself:

Download: Peace Lily (from the forthcoming The Yarn EP) mp3

Myspace: Holler, Wild Rose

CONTEST: I know that the Canadian Music Fest is going to be crazy busy for all y'all but if you'd like to stretch the experience out to one more day, I would highly recommend checking out the Audio Blood Tea Party at The Boat on Sunday March 15th. Besides welcoming Holler, Wild Rose! to our fair city, the bill also includes the poppy electronica of Great Lenin's Ghost, the post rock etherealism of Our History of Cowboys and my current local favourite band The Paint Movement. Tickets are only $5 and there is rumoured to be lots of free tea. However, to celebrate the fact that Holler, Wild Rose are trekking on up from New Jersey to see us all, I've got a pretty wicked prize pack available for one happy person. Here's what you get:

1) A pair of tickets to the show
2) A copy of Holler, Wild Rose!'s Our Little Hymnal CD
3) A copy of Holler, Wild Rose!'s The Yarn EP
4) A Holler, Wild Rose! t-shirt.

To enter, simply fire me out an email at quadb2001 [at] gmail [dot] com with "I want to Holler!" in the subject line, and your full name in the body.

Contest is now closed. Congrats to Benjamin L. for winning the prize pack. Thanks to all who entered.