Bucket of Rock - citizen blog - The Frederick News-Post Online

The indie folk pop band Sea Wolf released their new album entitled White Water, White Bloom this past September. The group which is primarily led by singer songwriter Alex Church has two other releases to date, an EP and their first full length album Leaves In The River. Church uses a revolving list of musicians on each compilation, but the premise of Sea Wolf songs are generally the same album to album. Church is heavily inspired by writers like John Steinbeck and Jack London so many Sea Wolf lyrics and metaphors draw on elements of the natural world. In this post I wanted to compare and contrast Sea Wolf’s first and second full album releases. While the lyrical themes are very similar between the two albums the styles are a bit different. Leaves In The River was released in 2007 and is a very typical sounding indie folk album. It contains laid back, slower paced compilations accented by Church’s haunting voice and a fairly simplistic instrumental line up. Many folks fell in love with hits off this album like Winters Windows, Middle Distance Runner, and You’re A Wolf. White Water, White Bloom is a bit of a different beast in comparison. First off the instrumental line up is much broader containing about twenty instruments this time which gives the album a much more classical feel. The songs are slightly faster paced compared to the first release and have a driving drum section that makes each song feel like a march of life. The songs are all quite pleasing to listen to also with catchy beats and introspective lyrics. Some of my favorites off this album are Wicked Blood, Turn The Dirt Over, and Spirit Horse. The biggest gripes among fans are in the differences that I listed between Leave In The River and White Water, White Bloom. Original fans may have been expecting the same haunting raw indie sound again in the new release, but were surprised by the very polished and elegant tunes that were contained. I happen to be a fan of both albums however I find myself unconsciously listening to White Water, White Bloom repeatedly with out getting tired of it. In conclusion both are excellent albums and you have your choice of Sea Wolf style. I expect Alex Church to continue this phenomena of style experimentation through out Sea Wolf’s life span, so don’t expect that what you hear today will be the same as tomorrow.