Benoît Pioulard A Coin On The Tongue

I figured somebody would jump on this review long before me, as this isn't my usual cup of tea, but spring is here and there is no doubt that I'll be blasting some Benoît Pioulard. American songwriter Thomas Meluch makes me feel like a little boy skipping around in a field of flowers with his uplifting voice and carefree melodies.

A closer look at the song lyrics reveals that "A Coin on the Tongue" is not quite the happy springtime tune that I originally pictured. Benoît is playing tricks on my senses when he starts a song with a happy folk melody and then decides to jump in with these lyrics:

Say hello to the end and it's big fucking jack-o-lantern grin.

I'll admit I still really like it though. He keeps it going with "blackened nails and acumen" and "lacerated fists full of arrowheads" but he sounds so happy when he's doing it that I can't help but smile and bob my head.

"Shouting Distance" is another favorite, but I don't think I've listened to a single song from the album that I didn't like. Benoît does a good job of throwing some variation into his music while managing to maintain his folk roots. He also has a couple of EPs available, but I suggest starting with Lasted as it's a good listen the whole way through.

Oregon-based Small Sails comes in with the bonus track, bringing an electronic take on Pioulard's "Kids Are Getting Younger."