From the first few seconds of the first track on Dark for Dark’s Warboats it is clear that this will be an album of beautiful harmonizing and gentle melodies. Fronted by multi-instrumentalist Rebecca Zolkower Dark for Dark is built on the weaving of her voice with her musical cohorts Jess Lewis and Mel Stone. The songs unfold like storybooks with each thought and observation blooming into a delicate musical illustration.  

Written primarily in a cabin on the South Shore of Nova Scotia Warboats is an album heavy with nostalgia and childlike wonder. So much so that even when songs touch on the harder topics of love lost, or at least found to be nearly overwhelmingly complicated (“How or Why”, “Wake Me When It’s Over”), it still has a playful touch. Making it a compassionate and accessible set of songs as perfect for a family road trip with some restless little ones as for a fall evening devoted to tea and memories.  The album even contains a couple of songs written especially for children (“Little Birds” and “Lullaby”). 

For those without a musical sweet tooth, the album may overwhelm but the excellent instrumentation of Liam Finney on banjo (especially on “SweetWater”) and others on several tracks allows distance from an overdose of harmonization. Warboats is an album to let into your heart as there is no doubt you will be treated with kindness. 

By Megan Clark
Oct 27, 2013