Yael has been compared to the likes of Feist, but her choice of instrumentation is all her own. I can’t get over how cool the trombone is “New Soul”. The music video is also very cool.

Most people know Victoria Bergsman, or have heard her voice, from the wildly successful song “Young Folks” by Peter, Bjorn, and John. Her guest vocals on the track really made the song what it is. But a few also might also know Victoria as the shy and unassuming vocalist of The Concretes from 1995 – 2006. I have always loved the Concretes but also felt that the strongest thing they had going for them was Victoria and her vocal purity. While the band may be extremely talented, I’ve often thought things would have been better if the sonorities of the other pieces in the track matched. As it was, there was not nearly enough “white space” to compliment the simplicity and reluctant beauty of Victoria’s vocals.

But that’s why it was so thrilling to discover Victoria’s new project “Taken by Trees”. Finally she has surrounded herself with what I think her vocals deserve, less. The result is an album, Open Field, which is simply the best work she has ever done. Track after track the listener is granted more freedom to access the timid, humble sound that is so starving from the world. With so few Emiliana Torrinis and Lisa Gerrards to offset the (insert name of female pop, full-of-herself, vocalist here)s that so inundate the radio waves, I find it refreshing that a singer can be successful, adored, and remain humble. With Open Field you almost feel that you are being served – that Victoria really wants you to have an enjoyable listening experience that you can almost interact with and explore.

Here’s a flavor from the album.

This isn’t a new song, but one well-worth blogging about. I first heard this at a small venue my wife and I had gone to to listen to one of our favorite local bands. The band was late getting on and the sound guy had this playing. I love it so much I had to interrupt him to ask him the name. But it wasn’t ’til much later that I saw the creative music video shown here that I was even more astonished with this truly great song.(But then my co-worker played it too much and now I hate it )