O My Heart

iTunes Review

On their sophomore effort brother and sister duo Ryan (guitar/vocals, writing) and Molly Guildermond (vocals) morphed from a quirky folk-pop outfit to a unique and smart indie-pop band. Drums are big and crisp, synths give way to strings, guitars jig and jag, and the vocal parts hopscotch and play like a kid in the park (Debra-Jean Creelman adds another layer of vocals on this recording). “O My Heart” is a sweetly barbed, hook-heavy number with a vocal arrangement that recalls both the Pixies and Imperial Teen (“Body of Years” also has a Pixie-ish energy driving it). Ryan Guildermond has a fanciful way with words: The twisted pop gem “Hayloft” is an eerily chirpy tune about clandestine lovers having their heads blown off, and “Ghosting” is a gentle plea from the other side: “I will be kind and ...sweet, if you stop staring through me...” Recalling the Fiery Furnaces, a couple of tracks play with acrobatic vocals, colorful instrumental textures and mid-tune costume changes: “Wisdom,” a silly, mood-shifting song about improving one’s intellectual capacity, breaks for trumpet and twinkling acoustic guitars; violins bookend “Body,” a plea to relieve the storyteller of a body that has become a bother. Good times, all around.