Even back when Hiss Golden Messenger frontman MC Taylor and Brooklyn-based guitarist Scott Hirsch played together in indie-twang troupe the Court & Spark, they shared a love of well-crafted songs trimmed in exquisite guitar tones. At one time, they even got the Byrds’ Gene Parsons to bend his B string all over a couple of songs.
With their fifth studio album, Lateness of Dancers, Taylor and Hirsch’s musical chemistry has braided together in even more beautiful similarities and contrasts. “Saturday’s Song” is an ageless yet fresh-sounding addition to the hymnal for just-got-paid working people everywhere. Taylor’s nascent North Carolina drawl seeps into Hirsch’s acoustic 6-string voicings like honey in tea, and the sonic brew is then spiked with a solo in which Hirsch’s nimble arpeggiations are the picture of sharp, cosmopolitan cool.
But the sum of these parts is hardly a country mouse/city mouse cliché: With help from Southern folk-rock dignitaries like William Tyler (Lambchop, Silver Jews), Phil and Brad Cook (Megafaun), and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig (Mountain Man), Hiss Golden Messenger is rewriting and adding to the public domain of timeless Americana. facebook.com/HissGoldenMessenger
LR Baggs Align Reverb Acoustic Reverb Pedal
The Align Series Reverb was built from the ground up to complement the natural body dynamics and warmth of acoustic instruments that we love so much. The circuit seamlessly integrates the wet and dry signals with the effect in side chain so that it never overwhelms the original signal. We shaped the reverb with analog EQ to reflect the natural voice inherent in acoustic instruments. Additionally, the tone control adds versatility by sweeping from warm and muted to open and present. The result is an organic reverb that maintains the audiophile purity of the original signal with the controls set in any position.
