Listeners who found
Half-Handed Cloud's
Thy Is a Word & Feet Need Lamps to be just another British folk-inspired Christian singer/songwriter affair pining for Jesus in a regressive childlike voice over an ocean of Casio drum beats will find no respite on 2006's
Halos + Lassos.
John Ringhofer, who along with engineer/percussionist
Brandon Buckner, make up the two-person collective that is this version of
HHC may be less guarded and conflicted about their religious prerogatives this time around, but their penchant for writing infectious indie-folk tunes like "Foot on the Brake," "A Picnic Few Want to Attend," and "You've Been Faithful to Us Clouds" makes the occasional proselytizing bearable. The production as always is raw but clear, with tuba, omnichord, marimba, tympani, guitar, trombone, and banjo merging like rush-hour traffic through each and every cut, and
Ringhofer's enthusiasm is genuine, yet one can't help but think that this instrumental Garden of Eden, with its youth-group choruses, sing-songy melodies, and Peter Pan imagery is about as far as he is willing to travel.