We Were Here

iTunes Review

If you're partial to what some folks call "whisper rock" — delicate and sometimes precious singer/songwriter based music characterized by acoustic guitars, string sections and of course wispy, hushed vocals like those of Nick Drake, Neil Halstead, Jack Johnson, Elliott Smith, etc. — then you're almost sure to fall for the songs of Joshua Radin if you haven't already. Radin's music was discovered by his friend actor/filmmaker Zach Braff who was so impressed with the aptly titled "Winter" (it sounds wintry) that he featured it on the soundtrack to his hit television show Scrubs. A deal with Columbia Records immediately followed and Radin's recordings were subsequently groomed for other young adult based television shows like Grey's Anatomy, One Tree Hill, and Brothers And Sisters to name a few. Throughout We Were Here, Radin's slightly textured voice sounds like he was just awoken from a nap (especially on the opening song "Sundrenched World") as his lyrics confess the complexities of living the life of a hopeless romantic. Fellow tunesmith Priscilla Ahn peppers Radin's debut with similarly fragile harmonies, helping to give the album the feel of an indie-targeted film soundtrack that sounds more Garden State than Juno.