THERE IS CALM TO BE DONE

Following 2011's The Hearts of Empty (KK 059CD), Liverpool-based band Dakota Suite,?led by Chris Hooson in collaboration with David Buxton, are back with another superb?album on Karaoke Kalk. While Hearts of Empty was a distinctly jazzy instrumental album,?There Is Calm to Be Done takes us further down a path of left-field songwriting and?alternative pop. The album was produced together with Quentin Sirjacq, with whom?Dakota Suite have already worked in the past, on Valissa (2010) and The Side of Her?Inexhaustible Heart (2012). The most striking thing about the Dakota Suite sound is their?immense instrumentation. While most songs are driven by the piano, they are adorned with?all kinds of instruments to provide an overall timbre of great majesty. The presence of brass?parts, woodwind, double bass and a wide array of instruments makes for a special sound.?Rhythmically, the drum parts throughout the majority of There Is Calm to Be Done are played?with brushes, which takes the edge off and adds a gentleness that only the swooshing of?brushes can achieve. The use of lap steel on the opening number This Is My Way of Saying?That I Am Sorry conjures up a definite country-rock feel. While the album is mainly songbased,?there are vast instrumental passages strewn throughout the record and intermingled?between songs. Flat Seat is one such instrumental tune with a decidedly filmic character; a?lilting composition both mesmerizing and intriguing. Much of the album feels as if it could be?film music, and each tune conjures a vivid image in the listener's mind to which the music?plays the soundtrack. Hooson's vocals are striking both for their singing-style and lyrical?content. Dronning Maud Land, for example, begins with the humorous line I seem to have?grown myself a pair of old man's hands, but the delivery is somber and melancholy. In the?Stillness of This Night is a powerful ballad that fuses the touching vocals and lyrical style?that is so prevalent on the album with an evocative arrangement. Committing to?Uncertainty is a somewhat darker composition, with the brass and woodwind orchestration?building to a powerful crescendo. Be My Love stands out as a prime example of singersongwriting,?as it relies solely on acoustic guitar and vocals. It is an unspeakably tender song?with a highly fragile yet resolute emotional lure. The penultimate title-track on the album, true?to its name, is a delightfully calm tune. The record draws to a close with the minimallyorchestrated?I Miss the Dust, a very delicate instrumental that drifts away like leaves on a?breeze. Dakota Suite's music has covered such diverse genres as lo-fi, folk-rock, electronic,?ambient, and taken in elements of jazz and modern classical. There Is Calm to Be Done?explores the art of songwriting while also venturing beyond, into new fields, to create?something new and subtle.?TRACKLISTING?01. This Is My Way of Saying That I Am Sorry?02. Flat Seat?03. In the Stillness of This Night?04. Committing to Uncertainty?05. Nu Dat Deze Dag Voorbij Is?06. Dronning Maud Land?07. Ask the Dusk?HIGHLIGHTS?* Karaoke Kalk presents a new studio album by Chris Hooson's Dakota Suite, in?collaboration with French classically-trained composer Quentin Sirjacq.?* LP version limited to 500 copies, pressed to 180 gram vinyl. Includes printed inner sleeves?and a download code.?* Dakota Suite's singer Chris Hooson is very, very sad indeed, and it sounds magnificent.?Employing cellos, violins and the ever-trustworthy harmonium, Dakota Suite offer their bruised?and battered heart to us, with painstakingly gorgeous, lush and brooding rock. --?Independent?* I mean, at times, Dakota Suite can outdo even the best of the woe-is-me sad sacks:?American Music Club, Will Oldham, Red House Painters' Mark Kozelek. But I'll?admit, it's probably been a while since a singer/songwriter's morbid depression has?translated into such a surprisingly simple, beautiful record. --Pitchfork?Official web site: www.dakotasuite.com?Also available:?(GR 730CD) Dakota Suite/Quentin Sirjacq: The Side of Her Inexhaustib... CD [EAN #4030433773024]?(GR 730LP) Dakota Suite/Quentin Sirjacq: The Side of Her Inexhaustible... 2LP [EAN #4030433773017]?(GR 742CD) Dakota Suite: An Almost Silent Life CD [EAN #4030433774229]?(GR 742LP) Dakota Suite: An Almost Silent Life LP+CD [EAN #4030433774212]?(KK 046CD) Dakota Suite: The End of Trying CD [UPC #880918040028]?(KK 051CD) Dakota Suite: The Night Just Keeps Coming In CD [UPC #880918034423]?(KK 059CD) Dakota Suite: The Hearts of Empty CD [UPC #880918019628]?Press Contact: eric@forcedexposure.com?08. Be My Love?09. Nothing Is Gone?10. The Tears That Bind Us to This Place?11. The World Touches Me Too Hard?12. There Is Calm to Be Done?13. I Miss the Dust