Cincy Groove

Carl Broemel

“It takes a lot of time to know your mind.” Its a simple statement, yet earnest and profound in its offering. Sometimes it’s the spaces in between, the subtleties and ambiguities that provide us with the most meaning.
 All Birds Say (ATO Records) is an intimate collection of musings on life from My Morning Jacket guitarist, Carl Broemel. 

Broemel reflects on things as they are with Zen-like contentment, making no judgment on how they should be…he gives pause for introspection but stops short of preaching. The songs are firmly planted between past and present. It’s in these little fractured moments that the listener bears witness to thoughtful contemplation that give rise to epiphanies on larger themes.

Broemel could’ve taken the easy road and penned a lyrical triptych to the remarkable journey he’s experienced over the past several years, but instead All Birds Say is an incredibly honest and sincere insight into the artist’s inner-most thoughts as he attempts to reconcile his role in life.
 “Where do you start? Or where do you stop? And how do you reconcile the things you do versus the things you don’t? It’s something I’m constantly thinking about. I think there’s a lot of trying to be aware of what you’re doing now versus dwelling on things or worrying about what’s gonna happen later. A lot of the songs are really just me talking to myself, trying to make sense of things in my head.”

Deft in its presentation, the songs on the album unfold in a dream-like stream of consciousness with lush and elegant arrangements. The album’s brilliance is displayed in Broemel’s effortless delivery. It’s the perfect amalgamation of lazy sophistication…whimsical poise and grace. The instrumentation serves as the ideal complement to Broemel’s well crafted set of modern-folk standards; complete with pedal steel, dobro, strings, autoharp, clarinet, bassoon, vibraphone, and baritone sax, among others. Think Ron Sexsmith, Neko Case, Neal Casal, Andrew Bird, Mose Allison, and early Boz Scaggs singing an orchestrated chorus of breezy ballads and waltzes. Read more