Thursday 15 May 2008

Quiet Village

I tend to be prematurely over-enthusiastic about the arrival of summer. So I was horrified when I woke up this morning feeling cold. After a handful of sunny days, I had completely forgotten it’s only mid May and therefore, technically, spring. Luckily, the sunshine returned mid morning, and all is well. :)

Good news, considering I’ve already found my summer soundtrack: Silent Movie by Quiet Village.

On hearing the opening track for the first time, you could be forgiven for expecting something cheesy. It's the type of album to listen to in its entirety -- though I already have my favourite tracks, and imagine some will receive plenty of airplay.

With its eclectic influences, including Italian film soundtracks, BBC library music, disco edits, acid rock, vintage soul and easy listening, Silent Movie, while classified as electronica, is unique, and not easy to describe. The past that sounds like the future...? Perhaps it's more a slightly surreal dream...

And now for the geeky part:

Joel Martin and Matt Edwards, AKA Quiet Village, borrowed the name from an exotica masterpiece by Martin Denny.

In this clip from the late 1950s, Martin Denny and his group perform Quiet Village, al fresco; on the TV show Hawaii Calls.

Summer sounds. I hope you enjoy!