“Until I Do,” “Drive,” “Gypsy Girl,” “Sometimes,” “The Ballad of Joni and Graham” on Spotify
Five singles
This set of singles from Other Brother Darryl is an excellent introduction to the Boston-area Americana supergroup. The band counts The Jayhawks and Wilco among their musical touchstones, but the most recent singles feel like a drive through Laurel Canyon, circa 1970, and not only on the obvious homage, “The Ballad of Joni and Graham.” These songs feature strong CSN-style vocals with a little of Young in the production and arranging. The single “Sometimes” also recalls other Gen-X lovers of the Laurel Canyon sound (Jakob Dylan, Counting Crows) with its layered instrumentation and wistful melodies. All of the songs feature strong professional studio polish, and special mention should be given to keyboardist Dave Lieb, who is as essential to the sound as the contributions from singer-songwriters Dan Cederholm, Nate Leavitt, Dave Mirabella, and Dan Nicklin. The tracks bode well for the release of their debut album, Roll Shine Roll (dedicated to founding member Mirabella, who sadly passed away in 2022), due out early next year. (Jay Jenne)