“Horizons“
from the album Someone Else’s Déjà Vu
2008
iTunes
Three years after Key, Son Ambulance emerge from their retreat with a third full-length, Someone Else’s Déjà Vu. On the album, Omaha singer-songwriter Joe Knapp (musical accomplice of Conor Oberst) brews up a concoction of soft, meandering melodies. This time, Knapp almost entirely ditches the piano and shakes things up a bit by using the double bass, saxophone, and even synthesizers. The result is a collection of soaring, swirling songs that drift along slowly, from the acoustic stripped-down Leonard Cohen-esque “Constellations” to the prog-rock closing song “Requiem for a Planet.” The single “Horizons” is reminiscent of Simon & Garfunkel’s folk-style, with Knapp’s vocals quietly floating over the organ and bells. Without reinventing the wheel, Joe Knapp offers honest songs perfect for a summer’s day, and firmly establishes himself as a songwriter in his own right.