Cassette Review: Good, Good Blood "Good, Good Blood" (Fox Food Records)

[£3 // https://foxfoodrecords.bandcamp.com/album/good-good-blood ]

Among the things that I enjoy in life no matter what are rhyming words.   An easy example of this is the chain store Hobby Lobby, which I became a fan of simply by entering and seeing all of the art supplies, but I also was just drawn to them because, yes, their name rhymes.     In that same sort of idea, I like things that seem like they should rhyme but do not, such as the case with Good, Good Blood as an artist name because even though the two words both end in -ood they are pronounced differently.     I once spent entirely too much time forming strings of words that should rhyme but do not.    Yes, that is something which I consider to be fun.

This self-titled cassette begins with a song that doesn't have words but acoustic guitars strumming while the sound of children playing in the background comes through ever so slightly.    Maybe it's because I'm a parent, but all of these different clips of kids making kid-noises always come together for me rather nicely as they all take me back to various bits and pieces of songs from Blue October.

The songs which follow by Good, Good Blood are a combination of acoustic melodies and harmonies.    The second song, for instance, has layered vocals which provide the harmonies and they really do sing the song title of "Hold Me Like a Child".    In this way, it has those elements of pop to it, although the rest of the cassette might not quite as much.

From Group Love to Simon & Garfunkel to EFS and Sufjan Stevens, the general sounds of Good, Good Blood can be familiar on the surface but when you truly listen to them and dig deeper underneath you'll realize that a distinct vision has been crafted here.    It's a combination of the many influences generating something new and the fact that no two people who pick up an acoustic guitar and sing are going to sound exactly alike (Though there are more instruments in play as well, in this dreamy, blissful music)

The last song on this cassette, "Dinosauria", demonstrates the variety on this cassette as it is spoken word over acoustic guitar melodies.   It reminds me of that one song that someone made once and is now played at virtually every graduation ceremony only, you know, this one is actually good and not a novelty.    With Radiohead coming out during points as well, this is just one of those beautifully constructed pieces where you can pull your own set of influences and yet still be forever amazed.