Rich on mood and texture, The Glaciers’ debut The Moonlight Never Misses an Appointment is an album of understated beauty. Comprised of future nuptials Jackie Linge and Ian Stynes, who you may remember from American shoegazing heroes The Mendoza Line, The Glaciers play the kind of atmospheric, rootsy pop that will last the whole summer. In other words, this is an album that sticks. Linge’s vocals are a stirring combination of darkness and light, and she commandeers every song with phrasing that is both assured and original. Much to recommend here, but to name a few, “World On Fire� suggests a more upbeat Beth Orton; “Habit To Break� is a country-tinged number replete with a wistful dose of pedal steel; and “To Be One� is a dreamy folk ballad that comes with a perfectly weepy string arrangement. Recorded in the basement of the couple’s home studio in Queens, the production here is intimate and warm, and lends a personal quality to tracks like the acoustic “Mobile Home� or the spare and moving “Fleeting Away.� Lovely work.
-Alex Green
(Release date: June 13, 2006)
