Arc Iris

About

Jocie Adams is a classically trained composer and multi-instrumentalist who did time with the Americana indie band Low Anthem before packing up her love of classical, cabaret, ‘70s folk, and even big-band music and trekking off in search of a decidedly different project. She took up with a new crew of friends to play with an expanded assortment of musical toys, including cello, trumpets, banjo, trombone, and plenty of keyboards and percussion. <i>Arc Iris</i> is the stunningly wide-ranged debut with Adams directing the parade: it’s a festival of marching horns, bluesy piano, sighing pedal steel, and playful cello parts that sometimes bellow like a didgeridoo. Adams’ voice is like a more subdued, Malibu-inflected Björk, and her way with stylistic shifts and melody is informed, confident, and restrained. The muted booming percussion, twinkling acoustic guitar, and banjo over a warm backwash of cello and trumpet on “Whiskey Man” is enchanting, and the frisky banjos and piano on “Money Gnomes” has a sweet, carnivalesque feel. <i>Arc Iris</i> touches a crazy number of musical markers, but overall it can be tagged as a smart, extremely musical, and adventurous outing that’s full of surprises.

via Apple Music