Timber Choir - “Cursive”
Longtime friends Adam Sams and Brendan St. Gelais, aka Timber Choir, have just released “Cursive,” an uplifting and folksy “ode to the road trip.”
You’ve ‘heard this tune before…’ it starts off with a fantastic marriage between the gently strummed rhythm of an acoustic guitar and a well-placed melody of piano keys. Out of the gate, it’s very clear that “Cursive” has been designed to make you feel good– and as much as we’ve been trained not to believe it, pressing play will make you happy to be alive. The vocals enter, gentle and sweet, grabbing the hand of your spirit and leading it out of the darkness.
Some soft, deep bass arrives just as the vocal harmonies make an appearance and there’s not a whole lot to this arrangement– its sparseness keeps it honest and heartfelt, like a quiet conversation with a friend who’s trying to convince you to just “get in the car.” As everyone is well aware, even the shortest of trips can result in cleansing the mind, provided there’s decent music playing. It’s safe to say that “Cursive” would provide just the right amount of medicine for such an occasion.
The lyrics appear to be woven together with fragments from the narrator’s memories, but they are so broadly placed that it is not at all difficult to find remnants of yourself buried within them. It’s a trip down memory lane and, at the same time, it’s hope for the future. After the second verse, the soundscape expands with some triumphant horns and some sleigh bells before retreating back into that delightful guitar and piano duet. There is no recurring chorus here, but the way that the vocal harmonies thicken the ends of each verse are quite the ear-worm nonetheless.