‘Not Real’
Stealing Sheep (Heavenly Recordings)
3.5 stars out of 5
British trio Stealing Sheep made an impressive debut in 2012 with “Into the Diamond Sun.” They blended psych-folk with dream pop to create an intriguing sound — dubbed “medieval-kraut-folk” — all their own. They expanded on their sound for album No. 2, “Not Real,” and the result figure to get them a more mainstream audience.
The 10-track, 34-minute “Not Real” relies more on synthesizers than its predecessor did, but the terrific harmonies from Becky Hawley, Emily Lansley and Lucy Mercer add a touch of warmth to the icy synth-fueled melodies.
“We started off in pre-production doing all the demos ourselves,” Hawley explains. “Those demos captured an atmosphere we wanted to carry forward to the album. The result was a hybrid of casual takes and more considered recordings.”
The sheen-coated “Sequence” gets the album off to a dancetastic start and Stealing Sheep also deliver the goods on “Apparition,” “This Time,” “Deadlock,” “Sunk” and “Love.” If these talented Liverpudlians continue to evolve, the future will be bright. (Jeffrey Sisk)
