Although this reviewer approached it with due caution, the "Dream Brother" compilation of Jeff and Tim Buckley covers proved an intriguing adjunct to the legend of these two hugely revered singer/ songwriters rather than the expected desecration of their good name(s).
Highlights came surprisingly thick and fast, with the likes of Clayhill, The Magic Numbers and Stephen Fretwell weighing in with great re-inventions. One of the most unlikely slices of skewhiff genius, however, was provided by Tennessee wunderkind MICAH P.HINSON, and even when taken in isolation, his cover of Jeff's "Yard Of Blonde Girls" remains something of a revelation.
Buckley Jnr's version of the song was lumbering, metallic and distinctly tongue-in-cheek, while Hinson's comes from a folky, skiffly and considerably more introspective headspace. It'll probably irk the purists, but it's well worth embracing for what it is and has loads of great individual bits (the shaker, the way it speeds up, the Gregorian choir made up of what sounds like several cloned David Bermans) which more than transcend the sum of the parts.
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And there's more, because the flipside finds inspired Portland, Oregon hubby and wife team VIVA VOCE tackling Tim's magnificent "Pleasant Street" with gusto. VV's recrafting is easily recognisable, but factors in carnival synths, loops, fuzz bass and opiated vocals. Once again, it's not really a question of it bettering the original, but it's tangentially excellent and a breath of dreamy, oppressive air in its' own right.
Bit of a result, then. Can't beat a couple of great, genre-straddling tracks to kick the year off with a vengeance, can you?
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