Despite Peaks And Valleys, The Soft Hills' Debut Transcends Fuzzy Folk

The Soft Hills are a Seattle based four-piece rock band who have found a home in Germany on Hamburg based Tapete Records, a venue devoted to their rich, rockin', harmony-heavy sound. On their debut, the group brandishes great sonic texture and reverb-soaked harmonies much like the Fleet Foxes, Grizzly Bear, and the '70s sounds of Neil Young, but their lyrics fall short of dazzling.

Tambourine tinged title track "Phoenix" calls up an over-played pastoral scene with flabby verses like "journey to the end of night" and "misty morning," followed by song "When We Were Young And Free," which comes off a little jaded for a band so green in years. But the album eventually fleshes out beyond fuzzy folk into psych-rock ("Chosen One," "It Won't Be Long), balancing weak imagery a la "window of my soul" [sic] with Erik Blood's solid mixing thumbprint for a mellow, hazy rock sound.

The Soft Hills play the Comet Tavern this Friday (2/3) at 9 p.m. with the Pica Beats and Cumulus.

The Soft Hills - The Bird Is Coming Down To Earth by Tapete Records