Fools Gladly

Come on Resolution Fools Gladly

'When the clock strikes twelve in Shakespeare's 'Julius Caesar,' it's an obvious anachronism. Striking clocks weren't invented for years after the events in the play take place. When Fools Gladly write an album's worth of rock solid, catchy, and achingly heartfelt songs, the anachronism isn't as obvious. This doesn't mean it isn't there. Fools Gladly plays pop music at a time when that term is sneered at with derision. The band doesn't have a publicist, matching hairdos, an agreed-upon group attitude, or a mythological past. The band instead let's the music truly stand on it's own, and the songs tower above all expectation. How refreshing it is to hear singer/songwriter Chris Marty swoon and croon like he means it, in a voice like he's whispering the secrets straight into your ear. How surprising it is to hear a backing band that truly supports each song as if they're afraid of dropping something so tender. And how nice it is to have a batch of songs stuck in your head for days without once wishing they'd leave you. This is not meant to imply that Fools Gladly have made bland music in an appeal to win over everyone. The songs can get downright creepy sometimes, with the vocalist sweet enough to take you home but glimmery enough in the eye that you don't know if you'll wake up. In other songs, the sparseness of the declarations of love is so sincere that it can be shocking. The sincerity of Fools Gladly's music is truly where the anachronism lies. People just don't do it any longer. Perhaps they never will again. Fools Gladly don't seem to mind being on the wrong side of the present, because the songs themselves are timeless.' * starred review by Nevus Lotesto, dot dot dot magazine.