Match Against A New MoonSinger-Songwriter, Roots Music, and Acoustic
by Fred Gillen Jr
Match Against A New Moon, the seventh full-length, independent,
solo CD by New York's Hudson Valley singer/ songwriter Fred Gillen
Jr. Featuring drummer/ percussionist Eric Puente, guest vocals by
Catherine Miles of the Ya Ya's and Abbie Gardner and Laurie
MacAllister of Red Molly, and some fine organ-playing by Paul
Silverman, also the photographer for the CD. Cover design by
Jeffry Braun featuring Fred Gillen Jr.'s notebook collages and a
thirty-minute portrait by Jessica Miller. Recorded at Woody's
House, Croton -on- Hudson, NY by Fred Gillen Jr. "Fred Gillen, Jr. writes without fear of the realm where life's aches dwell.
This latest collection, Match Against A New Moon flows like an insightful
river around rocks of mystery. Fred's lyrics and music are an invitation of
understanding, to the weary mind--from the first lines of Come And See
Me and the acknowledgment of brushes with temptation in Devil's Last
Word. We are seekers with him, in songs like Don't Give Up The Ghost
and Flicker. Cecelia is a rhythmically delicious song of identifiable ador-
ation where Fred's vocals shine. Land of Hope is well placed in the heart
of this collection and feels definitive of Fred's identity as a songwriter.
Lay Me Down is a silent plea we all issue for a place to rest in love. With
equal measure, Fred tends to the seeds of his own songs as carefully as
his new bloom of Leonard Cohen's rose, Hallelujah. A musical crest in
the sound of Light of Nothing, echoing the versatility of the likes of U2.
Primitive Angels is a heavenly example of Fred's poetic gift and a
moment to laugh at ourselves. An embrace of understanding is felt in
the last track, You May Be Down. Like the phase of the lunar orb it
references, Match Against A New Moon assures us that the day side
we see sans light is temporary in the ongoing transit of our lives."
-Catherine Michaels, WHUD FM 100.7 Hudson Valley, NY
Released: April, 2010
More about: Fred Gillen Jr
How to buy Match Against A New Moon
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