Smoke Fairies – Blood Speaks

Smoke Fairies Put a Spell on You

Smoke Fairies have been carefully gathering their influences like the ripe fruit of a summer’s feast. The British duo took their formative music experiences in New Orleans and Vancouver and settled with this combination in London, crafting ethereal mixes of wicked, sultry folk. Their second album, Blood Speaks, takes those same ingredients and pushes them to the brink. It’s no wonder Jack White picked them up as the first UK act to sign with Third Man Records. Smoke Fairies are at once entirely fitting of White’s trademark style and yet timeless in a very different way.

“Feel it Coming Near” is an oscillating gem, its driving, bluesy bridges sonic gold. Opener “Let Me Know” may be as rocky as Smoke Fairies get, though it’s an apt introduction to the progressive melodies and rich harmonies. The band straddles a complex boundary between Yes sensibilities and Fleetwood Mac spunk throughout the ten-track LP. Nowhere are those two styles as starkly represented than in “Hideaway,” a surprisingly mellow call to arms against a heartless lover and their intoxicating spells. Even in the overly-elaborate “Awake,” the busyness of arpeggios clashing against vocals somehow grows on you. Smoke Fairies tend to be just as alluring as their subjects, and even in their missteps, you can’t help but listen.