Eighteenth Day Of May - Cold Early Morning

  by Helen Tipping

published: 28 / 3 / 2006

---

Review

The Eighteenth Day of May are part of the current folk revival that is taking place, which though being led from the US, also has a British counterpart. Billed to play the Levellers' Beautiful Days festival in August and the Oyster Band's Festival at Leicester's de Montfort Hall in June, their folk credentials are assured. They also have an indie side to their music, some of them having previously been in indie bands, giving them more in common with bands such as the Levellers than the more traditional folk scene. They draw influences from such varied sources as Martin Carthy, Fairport Convention and the Velvet Underground, and there is very much a 60's psychedelic feel to their music. The band are based in London, but the members come from a variety of backgrounds, from America to Sweden and even Oxfordshire. 'Cold Early Morning' has a definitely psychedelic sound to it with its obvious folky influences. Its strings really remind me of something else folky or 60's, but it keeps slipping away from me. The instrumental arrangements on this track are excellent and combine to give a droney feel to the song, which is something else that the band strive for. The final track on this EP, is a cover of Anton Newcombe's 'Dawn' from The Brian Jonestown Massacre's 1998 'Strung Out in Heaven' release. I'll be catching them at Beautiful Days later in the year, as going by this CD they will be well worth seeing.

Track Listing:-

1 Cold Early Morning
2 Strings
3 Dawn