Your House and Mine

Chris Greiner makes Northern come off much more Southern than its moniker would suggest. Slow and in no hurry to complete several songs, the group exude a quiet confidence on the fluid "These Walls" that brings to mind a happy-go-lucky version of Knife in the Water or Wilco as Andy Happel adds touches of violin and cello. Only during the chorus does the tempo pick up mildly, but not enough to lose the rather world-weary, jaded effect. The slow, downtrodden Americana or alt-country tracks are extremely pleasing with "Daniel August" resembling a duet between Cowboy Junkies and Blue Rodeo as Greiner and Elizabeth Antalek offer fine harmonies. Northern also hit a home run with the gorgeous, piano-tinted "Plum Island," but they seem to miss the mark, albeit slightly, on the dirge-like "Across the Turnpike," slowing things down perhaps just a tad too much. However, the organ gives it a hymnal or gospel touch that makes it squeak over the bar as Greiner sings about feeling lonely. The first quasi-pop song is "Better Days," which is still quite sparse but contains an infectious melody and swampy arrangement. The band revisits a similar idea to "These Walls" for the adorable, bittersweet "If." The title track grows on the listener, beginning somewhat awkwardly but finding its comfort zone soon thereafter thanks to drummer John Greiner's waltz-like percussion. The highlight of the consistently strong record has to be "Toledo, Ohio," which crawls along before using a distant guitar and toy xylophone during the chorus, sounding like a close cousin of Dolorean.