Brooklyn Based Erin Pellnat's EP "Dream In Color" Is As Rich As A Box Of Old Polaroids

Brooklyn based Erin Pellnat's EP Dream In Color is a strange little animal. I mean it has songs that kind of have a bossa nova jazz feel, kind of art rock tones, kind of retro art folk in that Warhol factory sort f way, kind of medieval chamber tones, kind of Irish folkish or, well, you catch my drift. It is the drift, in fact, the "sort of" or "kind of like" elements that make the sounds on this records so interesting. This sense of blending styles and decades of music really make it a kind of time machine too.

The track Forever Kisses has such a kind of 60's staid quality emotionally grounded by Pellnat's pure vocal performance. The drums, the old school measured strums and is that an accordion?? The aesthetic is charming and could be taken as kind of corny if it weren't done so earnestly. The staging here feels like it could be a track in a Sergio Leone movie. I really love the feel here. In a similar way, Stay has a very elegant folk tone. Pellnat perfectly pronounced story telling harkins back to classic folk. The violin and percussive feel again time travels you back to some uncharted western territory or hills of green in Ireland. The thematic feel here is so dense, so rich with imagery. Dream in Color feels a bit more funky, more mysterious but still seems to exist in another time. While I actually thought of 60's icons like Nico and Judy Collins even, Pellnat's voice reminds me a bit of Cecillia Della Peruti (Gothic Tropic) and Leslie Feist (Feist).

Just when I thought I had the aesthetic here figured out my ears encountered Blue Skies and Happiness which percolates with a free smooth jazz vibe. Again Pellnat's vocals shine here. Perfectly controlled and so adult. Yes I know that sounds funny but there is a maturity beyond her years here. And a maturity in the compositions which makes sense as the songs were composed by Erin's father Christopher Pellnat. It turns out that Dream In Color is a family affair.

Erin is singer songwriter who fronts the band Caretaker while her father Christopher (a long time musician and songwriter) is currently the electric guitar player in the Poughkeepsie, New York based band Warp/The Weft. I am not sure whose decision it was to come together, daughter and father, for this project or if it just happened. In the end the reasons don't matter because the results are so beautiful and interesting. One can only hope that the Pellnat's will do some live shows together as well.

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Robb Donker