You’ll hear a lot from me this year about Kelley Stoltz. Stoltz is a San Francisco musician (weaned in Michigan) who has quietly been releasing stellar records over the past few years and just yesterday released “Circular Sounds,” on Sub Pop, a label that is really starting to hit it on all cylinders with some of their recent signings.
At first listen, Stoltz’s newest is a return to the “Antique Glow” sound, although this one is a little more polished. Stoltz loves to fool around with noise, but never so much that it becomes the albatross that we call “experimental.” Yet, I can’t help but picture the guy sitting in his living room with the metal top to a trash can in one hand, half a broomstick in the other – and a big smile on his face as he figures out how to incorporate it into a song.
While he manages to tinker lots, the beauty of it is that he keeps it extremely tuneful, poppy and it’s just a pleasure to listen to. The songs on the new album are threatening to be his best. Here’s “Birmingham Eccentric,” a song which may just stick around in your head for a while after you hear it. Enjoy.
[audio:birmingham.mp3]