Pulling up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint [Import]

The Lovely Sparrows (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 10, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Abandoned Love Records
• ASIN: B000JVRP8U
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #545,187 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Review

The live music capital of the world, Austin, is once again becoming quite the hotbed of up and coming artists. While many music fans continue to go bananas over What Made Milwaukee Famous, I have been enjoying the debut EP from The Lovely Sparrows. Their organic pop-folk songs are warm and intelligent, making for the perfect soundtrack as we slowly watch the leaves change colors with the arrival of autumn. The Lovely Sparrows were formed last year by singer/songwriter Shawn Jones and longtime friend Jason Cooper. Since the release of their first 7" single, "Take Off Your Hats You Godless Bastards," they have added a few more musicians and instruments to their arsenal, including Lauryn Steinburg (vocals, mandolin, flute) and Earl Vallery (drums, keyboards). With the new and improved lineup, the band has created Pulling Up Floors, Pouring On (New) Paint, a fantastic five-song introduction to a very promising Texan group. The EP begins with "Chemicals Change," an upbeat acoustic guitar and piano driven tune that has the feeling of an early track from Badly Drawn Boy. Perhaps it is the flute or the timbre of Jones' voice, but I definitely get a Damon Gough vibe from this, with just a tiny hint of southern twang. This is followed by "Your Flowers Will Bloom," a delicate song with very subtle percussion, using little more than jingle bells and cymbals until the end, when the drum kit kicks in with a surprisingly Nada Surf / The Shins flavored conclusion. "The War has Seen The Best Of Me" is comprised of acoustic guitars, piano and finger snaps, bringing to mind the unique percussive sounds of Adem's Love And Other Planets. The Lovely Sparrows' music is much more straight forward than his, but their choice of organic sounds bring him to mind. The EP concludes with "Let's Watch The Tourists," their most cinematic moment on the release. They play with the formula of soft to loud within the art-folk realm, making for a beautifully climactic ending to the record. The Lov --http://www.thetripwire.com/reviews/2006/10/4/the-lovely-sparrows-i-pulling-up-floors-pouring-on-new-paint-i-abandoned-love

"Your Flowers Will Bloom" is one of the loveliest - most delicate - songs you are going to [or will need to] hear all year. These 3 minutes alone, yet one of five tracks that complete pulling up floors, pouring on (new) paint, have every element of superior songwriting [Shawn Jones] - and a band executing the idea to their best ability. Beginning with a sparse acoustic coat - the band seamlessly incorporate strings, brass, percussion and a backing chorus that all lead the listener to a fitting guitar outro [if I may say so]. "Jesus don't take this the wrong way / you're just a ghost with a body. These elevator sounds - they're killing me. And your flowers will grow without you". The Lovely Sparrows come in, they set up shop, they blow your mind [leaving the needed parts intact] - then the four of them wrap everything up and leave you yearning for more. Hypnotizing offerings from one of the best bands making magic of music in such a time of dull clowns. And, yes, "The War Has Seen The Best Of Me" - lovely. Displayed in a 3-color screened Arigato Pak! [printed inside and out, mind you] - it is luxury music indeed from a blooming young label and a lovely band of Texans. - kaleb, sctas.com --http://sctas.com/2.0/floorsEP.html

Sonically speaking, The Lovely Sparrows (no relation to Sparrow or The Lovely Feathers) share more with Canada's latest crop of hyped indie bands than the band's homeland of Austin. The city's just incessantly gravid with talent; just in 2006, the Texan capital has boasted Oh No! Oh My! (they recently relocated back to the city from previous base Nashville), I Love You But I ve Chosen Darkness, Golden Bear and Voxtrot, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. Radiating autumnal, affable emotions with folk-leanings and subdued melodies, Shawn Jones and his rotating cast of musicians have created something worthy of the highest praises, in a folk/pop scene that s rapidly becoming bloated and stale. With only one 7" out there prior to this Pulling Up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint, the band is already leading the charge to make birds the requisite indie-animal when the bears initiate a seasonal hibernation. ... Buoyant in all aspects, the five-track EP eloquently skitters around all the fingerpicking, bells, handclaps and sing-alongs that have become entirely common, but when these guys do it, everything just sounds so much clearer and better. Jones' lyrics are probably the most outstanding facet of all, sometimes oddly Malkmusian but compelling nonetheless. The sough of cymbals and weeping acoustic guitar are washed to the forefront of opener "Chemicals Change", Jones ensuring his audience that "this is not the song you begged [him] to write," and then splashing in the dewdrop breakdown. Pouring on Paint may disappoint those to whom it comes off as one long track, but it could be argued that it's simply one piece with five separate, enchanting movements. If Dan Bejar and Carl Newman teamed up with Architecture in Helsinki, they just might be able to pull this off. David, Silent Uproar --http://www.silentuproar.com/showreview.php?ID=1562

Product Description

Austin's the Lovely Sparrows blend lush, complex arrangements with sing-along choruses that bring to mind glorious folk-inflected pop and well-written novellas. Pulling up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint captures the gorgeous melodies and warm, organic maladies of lead Sparrow Shawn Jones. Friends as well as former, current and occasional members of the band contributed their talents to flesh out Jones songs of heartbreak, blunted resolve, and shimmering resignation.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great EP and Perfect Valentine Love Story, January 26, 2010

By 

Dheudier "dheudier" (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pulling up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint (Audio CD)

I love all the tracks on this EP. My all time favorite song is the third track "War has seen the best of me". I really like how the lyrics are accented by mini bursts of percussion that grab attention and stick in your mind like duct tape. I gave it to my boyfriend last year for Valentines. The Lovely Sparrows is one of his favorite groups.

5.0 out of 5 stars Moving indie folk, January 6, 2007

By 

Ellie (austin, tx United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pulling up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint (Audio CD)

"Simply put, if this EP contained five more songs of the same quality as the five tunes on it, "Pulling Up Floors" would be the record of the year. This melodic folk band wraps its songs in more subtle surprises than you can imagine." - Play :: New Haven's Arts & Entertainment Weekly. I couldn't say it any better myself. Buy it.