CD Review
Artist: The Deep Dark Woods
Album: Winter Hours
Label: Black Hen Music
Released: February 17th, 2009

 Reviewed by Sarah Miller (Vancouver Correspondent)

Winter Hours, the sophomore release from Saskatchewan’s Deep Dark Woods sounds exactly as its name suggests. It’s an album that hunkers down against the cold and darkness of winter, keeping you warm with lilting, poetic lyrics but none of the upbeat energy that summer sunlight would bring. Winter Hours was recorded live at Vancouver’s famed “The Factory” studio, with Juno award winning producer Steve Dawson. Deep Dark Woods decided to record the songs live off the floor, which gives the album a homey and gentle feel.  With country guitars and fiddles weaving a background for Ryan Boldt’s plain spoken lyrics, Winter Hours evokes all of the staples of a great Canadian country-folk album. Neil Young would be proud.

The songs on this album come from different backgrounds: ‘When First Into This Country’ is a traditional English folk song, while ‘Polly’ was written collectively as the band members were jamming. ‘All the Money I Had is Gone’, the album’s first single about trying to catch a break, sounds a lot like something Ryan Adams could have written.

The Deep Dark Woods are headed to SXSW in Austin, Texas this month before hitting the road across Western Canada this April. You can pick up their album on iTunes or from Black Hen Music’s online store: www.blackhenmusic.com.

Track Listing:
Farewell
Nancy
How Can I Try
All the Money I had is Gone
Polly
The Birds on the Bridge
Two Time Loser
As I Roved Out
The Gallows
When First into this Century
The Winter Hours
The Sun Never Shines

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