Arbouretum - The Gathering (CD)

Now on their (yikes) fourth album, this is the project of some time Bonnie Prince Billy guitarist Dave Heumann. They have been compared to Will Oldham fronting Espers and certainly their Richard Thompson like compositions stretch out into the wilderness with lengthy guitar jams into progressive folk territory but tracks like 'When Delivery Comes' have a Feelies/Talking Heads jittery nervousness whilst 'Waxing Crescents' recalls XTC if they were recorded whilst playing in a vat of oil. The overall feeling though is somewhere between fuzzed up stoner folk and the twisting story telling of the likes of Jethro Tull. I like the songs, less so the guitar solos but it comes with the territory I guess and they don't go on too long in the whole scheme of things. A nice surprise.