Gentleman Reg

You cannot expect little wallflowers, after leaping from walls, to wilt in the corner or dry of drought. With the upcoming release of Gentleman Reg’s third album, Darby & Joan, Reg and his players (including members of the Constantines, Hidden Cameras, Kepler, Royal City, Sea Snakes, Sloan, and Snailhouse) have set the old shed to flames. All you are asked is to bring your books you never liked to stoke the fire. Yes, his music is that cathartic.

And at the barbeque of smoldering pasts, you may see the epic-pop-sprawl of Rufus run by, the haunting melodies of Elliott Smith rise up, or perhaps Bjork’s little swanlings going for a dip beyond the shed’s crumble. The music of Gentleman Reg will leave you reminiscing for all the luscious melodies you heard in times gone by. But only peripherally, for with his bag of surprises (no small part due to Dave Draves?Eenchanting work at Little Bighorn Productions), his orchestral new album is so full of wonder that everything outside of the moment when he’s playing fades into some ambiguous backdrop. Yes, his music is that tempting.

This is Gentleman Reg at his fullest, like you have never heard him before. Thick vocal cords wrapping around you like the sweetest of birthday presents. At this point, you can’t even imagine where he found the flair to start the fires anyhow. All you can hope is that he’s still enough of a gentleman to let you next to the warmth for a while.