Laura Stevenson and the Cans - Holy Ghost! [7-inch] (Cover Artwork)
Staff Review

Laura Stevenson and the Cans

Holy Ghost! [7-inch] (2009)

Mandible


When I think of Orgcore, I think of beards and things that are at least tangentially related to Hot Water Music (like beards!). I don't think of pretty female-fronted indie tunes in the vein of Laura Veirs and a folksier Lemuria. Yet that's what I received on Holy Ghost!, a seven-inch from Org-approved indie folk act Laura Stevenson and the Cans.

Holy Ghost! offers three tunes for consideration. Opener "Mouthbreather" starts off modestly, just softly strummed guitar while Stevenson asks the eponymous mouthbreather to, uh, "breathe deeper." It's all very soft and warm, but the song gradually builds into a big ol' fireworks display, complete with horns, drums and one heck of a set of lungs from Stevenson. She can belt it out when needed. "Holy Ghost!" is a comedown by comparison, perhaps intentionally.

"Gathering and Leaping," the lone B-side track, opens with experimental feedback before settling into more country-ish territory, complete with accordion and violin. It's charming and peppy. The same could be said for the seven-inch overall.

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