Heaven and Holy

Already distinctive powers on their own, the combination of Jeremy Earl and Glenn Donaldson as Painted Shrines strikes a fantastic balance of their respective sonic identities throughout the projects debut album, Heaven and Holy. Since the early 2000s, Earl has been an integral part of rootsy indie folk band Woods, and Donaldson has brought his songwriting and production perspectives to the airy psychedelic rock of Skygreen Leopards and more recently his wistful and jangly solo project the Reds, Pinks and Purples. Recorded over the course of a week spent collaborating in Donaldsons studio, Heaven and Holy is a wonderfully loose collection of bright songs and instrumental interludes that find both songwriters relaxing somewhat as they weave their strengths together. Earls distinctive falsetto vocals are immediately recognizable from his lengthy tenure with Woods, and songs like Gone and Moon Will Rise could pass for Woods tracks on first blush due to the familiar vocal presence. However, Donaldsons flare for jangly melodies and moody, Byrds-descendent arrangements sets Painted Shrines apart completely. Twelve-string guitar lines, tambourines, and chiming acoustic guitar tones show up throughout the album, from the simple, upbeat glimmer of opening track Saturates the Eye to the eight-miles-high fuzz guitar that comes in and out of the anthemic title track. The production isnt particularly lo-fi, but the sounds feel more casually captured than fine-tuned, adding to the relaxed atmosphere of the album. Donaldsons songs as the Reds, Pinks and Purples are more melancholic and lonely than his more psychedelic work with Art Museums or Skygreen Leopards, and hints of that songwriting style come through in tunes like Not So Bad and The BZC. The vocal tunes are connected by several instrumentals that take Painted Shrines sounds even further out. Surfy ambiance and hand percussion meet with woozy, searching melodies on Soft Wasp, and Coast is a wash of echo effects and searing fuzz tones. Painted Shrines find their sound on a Venn diagram that links the distant weariness of New Zealand legends like the Bats or the Verlaines, the downtrodden jangle of the Feelies or the Go-Betweens, the openhearted indie psyche of both Earls and Donaldsons other projects, and a healthy dose of anything-goes studio experimentation. The songs are great on the level anyone familiar with either player has come to expect, and the extraneous sounds of the instrumentals keep the album moving along in an interesting fashion. Not every collaboration is as strong as the sum of its parts, but Painted Shrines is a wonderful example of two like-minded artists bringing out the absolute best in each other. ~ Fred Thomas