The Autumn Film is looking for The Ship and the Sea.
If it’s Tuesday, it must be time for Steal This Track. This is Reverb’s weekly opportunity to give you free music, and we love that. Every week, we review tracks sent to us by some of Colorado’s most exciting and talented artists and select one shining song to slip right into your computer and/or MP3 player. In most cases — thanks to the generosity and cooperation of the musicians who make up our scene — Steal This Track gives you the chance to hear music that hasn’t been released to the general public yet — like this week’s song, “Ships on the Ocean Floor,” by .
The Autumn Film — Tifah Al-Attas, Dann Stockton and Reid Phillips — made a big splash on the Denver music scene five years ago, under the name Tifah. By 2007, however, the trio assumed a new identity and released its debut album, “Safe and Sound.” Filled with lush, radio-friendly, piano-driven ballads — and a few rockers — the album established the Autumn Film as one of Denver’s strongest adult alternative acts. That reputation is bound to be cemented with it’s new album, “The Ship and the Sea.”
Al-Attas’s melancholic vocals and emotive piano playing often inspire comparisons to other strong female singer-songwriters, like Sarah McLachlan and Fiona Apple. However, in the interplay among Phillips, Stockton and Al-Attas, there’s more than imitation. Rich textures, surprising turns of phrase and pleasantly skewed melodies give the Autumn Film enough weirdness and originality to add something fresh and exciting to a familiar genre. Strong tracks like “Roll Over Me” and “Don’t Go Away” — anchored by expert songwriting and a vague sense of familiarity — seem destined for heavy radio play. And that’s exactly why we’re sharing something completely different — the slightly quirky rocker, “Ships on the Ocean Floor.” The frontwoman’s voice and piano are still the centerpiece of this track, but Stockton’s tribal drums and Phillips’s electronic blips propel the track forward like a lost Everything But the Girl track, while Al-Attas pounds the lower end of an electric piano with irresistible power and energy.
Special note: At the request of the Autumn Film, we are offering this week's Steal This Track as a high-quality, 320kbps download, instead of our usual 128. Enjoy the fidelity!
Stream it:
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If you like what you hear, don’t miss the Autumn Film’s official release of “The Ship and the Sea” at on Friday, March 5. Tickets are just $12. If you pre-order the album for $15, you’ll get the CD when it’s released, as well as a digital download of the album on February 26.
If you’re a band or musician ready to unleash some fresh sounds on the readers of Reverb, email your tracks to Eryc Eyl for consideration.
Please note that downloads offered via Steal This Track are intended to whet your appetite. Please support the artists by buying their music and/or seeing them live.
Eryc Eyl is a veteran music journalist, critic and Colorado native who has been neck-deep in local music for many years. Check out every Tuesday for local music you can HEAR, and the every Friday.
