Reviewed by Tony Cummings

What a wonderful surprise! Yesan Damen (which I'm reliably informed is pronounced yes-in day-men) are an aggregation which grew out of recording sessions when singer/songwriter Danny Kwak (who'd previously worked with Autumn Sonata) began recording. Now the musicians who worked with him are out there and gigging around the Seattle area. What they've already delivered is a truly memorable album debut. If you can imagine a sound which has some of the laid back melancholia of Pedro The Lion, a little of the feather light craft of Belle And Sebastian and a whole heap of ambient pop touches you'll be close to imagining Yesan Damen's sound. The tracks where flute and cello interweave with delicate acoustic and jangling pop rock guitars are particularly memorable. Lyrics take in the vagaries of the human condition ("Promise To Remember": "Meaningless words found their way into my mentality"), and the need for a spiritual reality check ("A holiness that few can take, a righteousness most can fake") and much more. Mr Kwak, producer Zak Dewey and the folk at new label New Wine are to be congratulated on delivering such a haunting and inventive debut album.

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