Last year Wake Owl released a collection of stunning and fresh sounding indie folk to wide acclaim with their EP, Wild Country. This year the Vancouver/Portland band returns with their full-length debut, The Private World of Paradise, which explores new territory. This time around Wake Owl’s core members, Colyn Cameron and Aiden Briscall, have teamed-up with producer Richard Swift (the Shins, Foxygen, Damien Jurado), and his influence is immediately felt with a hazy 70’s folk-pop vibe. In contrast to Wild Country’s commanding, cinematic presence, The Private World of Paradise is more subtle, experimental and ethereal. A few standouts include: the Beach Boys tinged “Days in the Sea”; the ‘70s soul influenced “Candy”; the stripped down funk on “Candy’s Return”; the heart-on-sleeve tune “Kid”; and the album’s centerpiece, “Madness of Others.” The Private World of Paradise is another solid effort from Wake Owl that will be sure to please their growing base of fans. – Written by JFelton
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