As far as a musical Curriculum Vitae goes, Walter Schreifels could be doing a hell of a lot worse on the run up to releasing his first solo effort – Gorilla Biscuits and Rival Schools are just two from the rather long list of previous bands.
On An Open letter to the Scene, Schreifels is adventuring into the sunny and ambiguous land of “alternative folk”, and its lazy Sunday afternoon songs of the very, very best kind.
20 years of songwriting experience tends to either leave you formulaic or going from strength to strength, and fortunately the songs here strongly implies the latter – it’s beautifully honest without ending up depressing, and though fairly downtempo, never ends up sluggish.
Opener Arthur Lee’s Lullaby, Save the Saveables and the title track are probably the strongest tracks on the record but the thread of influences and clever lyrics stitching the whole thing together make for a highly enjoyable listen from start to finish.
The style might sidestep a few fans of Schreifels’ old bands, but if you judge it on what it is – clever and interesting storytelling set to subtly brilliant music backdrops, it’s a great record, and if you’re even vaguely interested in the stripped down side of rock, you’ll be hard pushed not to really like it.