Reed KD is a perfectly orchestrated hybrid of Elliott Smith's soft, introspective voice and Simon & Garfunkel's narrative songwriting. Frontman Reed Dahlmeier's songs are mainly stripped-down, art-folk pieces with intricate guitar melodies and spare, rhythmic riffs. Recorded in closets, bedrooms and living rooms, Reed KD's latest album The Ashes Bloom, is minimalist with a hint of bluegrass, some pop textures and touches of electronic experimentation.
The Ashes Bloom is beautifully produced, drawing inspiration from other similar lo-fi affairs without being too derivative, despite the fact that Dahlmeier had no specific plan in mind. "I had a little idea of what I was doing, but really loved the element of discovery in making the album."
Dahlmeier wrote "Empty Bottles" and the other songs on The Ashes Bloom as "more of an afterthought," he says, "and (they) just ended up being autobiographical." Dahlmeier says that listening to the songs is like "looking at an old album of photos."
Dahlmeier co-started Dirty Laundry Records to independently record, produce and distribute his music and his friends'. DLR is the home of many Northern Californian singer-songwriters and Dahlmeier's supporting band, The Armchair Aviators.
Dahlmeier is getting ready for his first national tour without The Armchair Aviators. "A friend and I put the whole thing together," he says. "We'll be packing five or six of us in my little VW van for 2-3 months." Besides touring, he is working on a new album that he hopes to release in August.
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