The Painted Birds debut album has landed!

Sometimes you shouldn’t review an album after seeing a band live first, just as you normally shouldn’t watch the movie before reading the book. I recently saw The Painted Birds play a great set at the Plaza in Vancouver and they blew me away with their passion, their musicianship, their ability to take the crowd into the palm of the hand and keep them there for the entire set.

Victoria boys “Current Swell” bring the groove on 2nd album!

I remember where I first heard a Jack Johnson song. It was on a beach in Thailand, walking to dinner as we passed a beach bar with Jack playing in the background. My friend literally dragged us in for a drink to listen. To this day I think of sunny days, sand beneath my toes and chillin’ on a beach whenever I hear Jack. After listening to Current Swell’s second album ‘Trust Us Now’ it could just as easily have been this album that I heard on that sunny beach.Often compared to Ben Folds, Jack Johnson and Sublime the boys from Victoria do stray into familiar territory from time to time though more as homage, and throughout there’s a unique sound that is Current Swell’s own. Mixing blues, folk, reggae and rock like veteran musicians, these lads, who look like they should be delivering newspapers after work, not doing world tours, sound mature beyond their years. Throw in serious musical chops including slide guitar and dirty harmonica and a beautiful organ and you get a plethora of musical styles fused together by the bands tight harmonies and a fun groove.