Nick Vallentine
Apocalyptical Apathy
Xalex Records

Beck, but with less irony than that would imply. The spooky reverb of the guitar frames words of roasting marshmallows on the embers of the things you hate. "I'll write my last song / It will finally be a hit / And I'll accept my fate / But I'd rather not die" he sings of the supposed apocalypse. So it goes, Vallentine sings of ghastly things in a seemingly deadpan fashion and supplies minimal backing. The music moves at a funeral pace, is this the gothic Iron And Wine?

He sings of taking a walk with the dead and elsewhere there's a reaper's lament. A theme seems to emerge. Vallentine treats it with gallows humor and cool tunes.

He's here to entertain and not just for Halloween.

Copyright © 2006 Anna Maria Stjärnell