Red House Painters

How come I hadn't found you earlier?

I think I had pre-judged Red House Painters before I'd listened to them. Not really a fan of earnest acoustic singer/songwriter types, I had them pegged down as one of 'them'. How wrong. How very, very wrong. Listening to Down Colourful Hill, for the first time, I realised I'd come across an album I'd cherish. To me, it sounded like a mix of Low, Nirvana and Jeff Buckley. It was soulful, heartfelt music pieced together by Mark Kozelek's gorgeous voice and the lush, doleful guitar reminiscent of Low. Some have cited the band and Kozelek as being miserabilists, but the same accusations have been levelled at Interpol and Radiohead, so I'm not complaining. Their self titled debut is equally good, featuring the same debt to 'slow core' as DCH. The rest of the band's work errs more on the acoustic side, and to my ears less interesting, however there are some great songs to be found on albums like Ocean Beach and Old Ramon.I am just starting to get into Kozelek's current band Sun Kil Moon- this interest is buoyed by the promise of another 'Carry me to Ohio'.