The Old Days Feeling is a collection of old and unreleased material by Olympia-based indie songstress Mirah. Despite her numerous collaborations with, among others, Phil Elverum of the beloved Microphones, she remains an underrated figure in the indie rock scene, accumulating critical acclaim for the unique sounds of her solo work while remaining largely unknown in the popular music world. As this collection illustrates, that lack of recognition is certainly undeserved. Her stripped down, under-produced arrangements illuminate a songwriter who has as much edge as she does pop sensibility. With a jazzy, almost child-like voice, Mirah alters her straightforward indie folk sounds with found sounds, detuned novelty instruments and lo-fi production that create music worlds apart from the clichés of the singer/songwriter scene.
The fact that so many of the songs sound like home recordings gives a richness that’s wonderfully intimate. Mirah’s voice is intriguing enough that it certainly doesn’t need much manipulation. The minimal production she does favor brings a lot to the music: tape hiss and vinyl pops, ska horns that sound as if they were recorded on an old tape recorder, the occasional hits of reversed cymbal or reverb-y percussion that resonate like someone beating on a piece of furniture or a child’s toy.
“Lonesome Sundown” features barely audible vocals over a loud, detuned and distorted piano and the result is a bizarre while somehow beautiful song. Equally intriguing are the ukulele and high-pitched Frankie Valli style backing vocals of “Dreamboat,” which create a sound simultaneously sunny and introspective. The sweetness of the song is countered by the saltiness (and perversity) of the lyrics: “Whatever happened to the sweet young chick who fell for the babe with the strap-on prick.” “Heat Gets Hotter” layers a childish singsong-y melody over lo-fi electronics and the delicate clinks of found sound percussion.
The star of the compilation, both literally and figuratively, is “The Sun.” What begins as a dark and hypnotic duet of guitar and vocals slowly builds into a beautiful chorus of voices that take full flight when Ringo Starr-style drums kick into full propulsion behind them. Once again, it’s amazing where the singer can take you with such simple instrumentation and production.
While so many collections of unreleased compositions serve mostly as an insight into the artistic process for only the most die-hard of fans, The Old Days Feeling is an intriguing and varied piece of work that actually works as well as an introduction to Mirah’s music as it does a novelty album for indie-rock connoisseurs. As different as each song sounds, they flow together to create a wonderfully effective and day dreamy whole that is innovative enough to keep your ears constantly stimulated and accessible enough to put on repeat and enjoy over and over.
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