Remmelt, Muus & Femke form a quite popular Dutch trio, they actually get airplay and live-spots on national radio, every now and then they even appear on TV! Well-deserved attention, as their poppy folksongs with an American flavor are just beautiful... All three of them show professional musicianship, singer-songwriter-guitarists Hugo Remmelt and Thijs Muus started out in 1995 as an acoustic duo, young lady-singer Femke Japing joined about four years later and also began writing her own songs for this album. Asked what kind of label they prefer on their music, they come up with "passionate acoustic"! The music-critics like to go back to the Westcoast around 1970 for a comparison: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young is an often mentioned group. Indeed, Thijs Muus is blessed with a very convincing Neil Young-type of voice! But the approach is more of nowadays and the lyrics are realistic in a poetic way, if you think that doesn't go together, just listen to gorgeous "Carina's Waltz"! A very pleasant surprise is also the somewhat psychedelic song "New Shoes For Kids" with "freaky guitar" and tapeloops in the background. The alternating leadvocals keep the listener focussed, both gentlemen are accomplished guitarplayers and I just love those little extras, like the tinwhistle on "Sad Man", some accentuations by the harmonica, the bouzouki on upbeat "Here Comes The Sun", let's not forget the "angel chorus" of "Sacred Arms" and Femke's political statement in live-bonustrack "Who Decides?" Also important during these days of downloading & burning: the lay-out is so special that you should make sure to buy the whole original package, then you can be amazed about that cactus in the Dutch street and the Dutch busstop in the middle of the American desert!
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By Johanna J. Bodde