Loney Dear: All the cities are sleeping (don't know them at all)

Last Friday I was in Omaha visiting my friend Nicole and our mutual friend Andrew Bird. AB was marvelous, nothing less than expected, in fact so great that there isn't much to say about him that hasn't been said already.

A quite happy surprise was the opening band, Loney Dear. Two points:

1. Awesome music.
2. The frontman's name is Emil.

I feel he/they are gaining in popularity with their latest release, Dear John, but that was $15 and I only had $13. So I asked which of the two early releases (The Year of River Fontana and Citadel Band) the guy selling the CDs recommended, and then I looked up to realize I was talking to Emil Svanängen himself, and he told me I could have them both for my $13. Sweet!!!

I kind of like the starting-at-the-beginning thing. I think I'm going to sit with these two CDs for a bit before I venture into the newer releases. It won't be hard to do, because I CAN'T STOP LISTENING TO THEM. Ack. So good. The first listen was driving through cold Iowa on the drive back from Omaha. Mark pointed out Loney Dear's obvious influences/similar sounds (sigur ros, the shins, radiohead...) and it's all true, and a good thing, too, because Emil likes the kind of music I really like and then made more music I really like.

Mp3: Loney Dear - Over the Mountain (Buy)
Mp3: Loney Dear - Hold Me (Buy)