Mint: Happy Birthday To Me
Boltfish

To a far greater degree than the norm, the songs on Murray Fisher's third Mint EP Happy Birthday to Me bear titles that distill their sonic essence in uncommonly astute manner. Though it begins with hazy organ triplets, “Life in Widescreen” gradually gathers steam with staggered rhythms of insistent beats, chiming keyboard melodies, and bright washes that collectively end up sounding suitably panoramic. An unashamedly (though repetitive) pretty piano melody forms the core of the lovely lullaby “For You” while “Hilltop” conjures stately atmospheres of immense breadth. Bringing the EP to a dusky close, melancholy piano figures imbue “ Midnight ” with a retiring nocturnal essence. Oddly enough, unlike the song titles, the EP's celebratory title hardly matches the music's generally restrained character.

August 2005