Gentle acoustic numbers with a wonderful scratchy sound and background fuzz that makes it feel like a lost folk recording from distant days past. Listen closer
and a world of haunting alternatives to the everyday that would turn Lewis Carroll green with envy are slowly revealed.
- Decode Magazine
William Carpenter is a songwriter, originally from Minneapolis, now living in Portland, and usually on the move. Between his eclectic catalog of music (from the pure noise of his first solo release to his current psyched-out folk music) and his tendency for lyrics both heartfelt and nature-inspired, comparisons with other experimental songwriters that keep the melodic in mind are inevitable (Phil Elverum, Vetiver, Nick Drake).
Originally from Scotland, Shelagh McDonald moved to London in the late 1960s, where she was part of the folk-music scene. In 1970 she released her first album, Shelagh McDonald Album, which sold rather poorly. 1971's Stargazer sold better, and was critically acclaimed. However, some time after its release, McDonald disappeared and wasn't heard from again until quite recently. Shelagh McDonald's music is close to that of some of her contemporaries, for example, Sandy Denny, Nick Drake, and Duncan Browne.