THE APRIL MAZE – The April Maze (Own Label A-MAZE 005)

april mazeAn Anglo-Australian husband wife duo comprising Todd Mahew on guitar and banjo and Sivan Agarn on cello and guitar, it’s a fair bet that no one outside of the Antipodes, or indeed Melbourne, would have heard of them until a couple of years ago when their sophomore album, Two, registered on Spotify’s Top 100 most popular new releases and they went on to rack up some 70,000 hits.

Their self-titled UK debut draws on their two Australian releases to showcase their indie alt-folk, much influenced by the sound (and fashions) of 70s San Francisco, Agam’s voice a rich cocktail of dark molasses and sweet honey (particularly bluesy on ‘Tumbleweed’) while Mahew provides warm harmonies and counterpoints. Wisely, she dominates, with her other half only taking lead on three numbers, uptempo strummed folk rocker ‘I’ve Seen The Rain’, released as a single last year and one of the two new tracks, Winter’s story of his brother’s romantic travails and  ‘I’ve Just Seen A Face’ which, taken at a slower pace and rhythm than the original, is one of two Beatles covers included.

Although his banjo makes its presence felt (especially on the slow waltzing, stripped down ‘Salt Water’), as with Sivan’s  vocals, it’s the cello that dominates, giving a dark, earthy tone, fleshed out with violin, mandolin and bouzouki on several tracks, the latter pair evident alongside upright bass on the jazzy cabaret rhythms of ‘The Protest Song’.

The second Lennon and McCartney choice is album closer, a faithful acoustic guitar reading of  ‘Two Of Us’, while a third cover comes with a rather lovely homespun folk account of the Hooters’ classic ‘And We Danced’. The other non-album inclusion was also a single release, ‘Don’t Let the Bastards Bring You Down’, a blend of traditional  and tribal folk with orchestral flourishes inspired by Agam’s experience of bullying. They say that one of the best ways of beating bullies is to rise above them. She and their music can look down from great heights.

Mike Davies

Artist’s website: www.theaprilmaze.com


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