A gentle, dreamy uneasiness runs through the bedroom recordings of Long Beard’s late 2015 release “Sleepwalker.” The 13 track Team Love Records release is the culmination of singer-songwriter Leslie Bear’s introspective creativity. Combining backward-loop studio techniques with traditional folk compositions, the band achieves a subtle, needy urgency. The heart tugging ache of The Sundays’ Harriet Wheeler can be found on lead track “Porch,” as chords and voice layer in a dissonant beauty. “Hates The Party” (streaming below) creates further reflective moments, while putting forward the statement that “there’s more than one reason, to hate the world spinning – everyone hates the party.” “Summer/Fall” shows the benefits of taking ideas into larger studios, making excellent use of backward looping as the instrumental base for Leslie’s temperate vocals. “Dream” impresses with counterpoint, out-of-sync percussive background click, cleverly approximating the chaotic sleeping mind. “Someplace” takes that even further with a three and a half minute soundscape containing the single lyric “always thinking of some place some time ago.” Long Beard plays live tomorrow (December 29th) at Baby’s All Right. – Dave Cromwell
