Apothecary Hymns – “Trowel and Era ” – [Locust Music]

Daryl Licht   10/27/2007   12-inch, A Library

“Trowel and Era ” is the debut full length from former Court & Spark member Alex Stimmel’s solo project, Apothecary Hymns. On this release Stimmel takes elements of indie rock, “American primitive”, 60’s British psych and folk, and 70’s major label rock (which, I know, sounds potentially bad, but is incorporated tastefully by Stimmel) to create a diverse range of excellent pop and rock tracks. Over the course of the album’s 9 tracks there are solid takes on contemporary indie rock (“Abandoned Factories”), acid folk (“The Father”), retro-sounding popsike (“Watching The Bay”), late 60’s/early 70’s English “group folk” (“The Marigold” and “A Sailor Song”), and, even, some over the top fuzz boogie (“All True Love Is Happiness”). In summary, “Trowel And Era” is a well-crafted and stylistically diverse set that’s not to be overlooked and I look forward with great anticipation to future releases from Stimmel’s Apothecary Hymns. DL