Wheel In The Sky
posted in: Artist Features • Music News • Rock
And The There Were Three: Half of Boston's Ferris Wheel
Not everything that goes on behind dorm room doors has to be shady. Sometimes it’s as simple and as serendipitous as a guy playing his cello. Such is the case with Boston’s Ferris Wheel, who recruited their cellist after overhearing him practicing his instrument at Tufts University. Little by little, through acquaintances and classmates, the three-piece project became a real band, seven members strong and spanning three universities.
But the real allure of Ferris Wheel isn’t their genesis, it’s their songcraft. Fans of the National, Grizzly Bear and Wilco will find much to like. On The Wrigley Field Faithful singer Josh Bolduc channels his inner Paul Simon, telling his story unhurriedly and unadorned. The elegiac tale of a cross-country pilgrimage is first painted in muted colors (acoustic picking and the woeful whinny of a trumpet) and then in bold dashes (the kick-start of drums, jubilant piano and an epic sing-along chorus). On the almost gospel Lay Down, singer Justine Bowe’s crystalline voice coats the song like treacle, while mercurial arrangements take listeners from dusty strumming to a grandiose chorus of soaring voices, stomping feet, clapping hands and shimmering tambourines. Theirs is a revival you’ll want to attend.
