While
Tiny Ruins
began as a true solo project by songwriter
Hollie Fullbrook
, its delicate sound was subtly expanded for 2014's
Brightly Painted One
. Like that album, 2019's
Olympic Girls
was recorded with bass player
Cass Basil
, drummer
Alex Freer
, multi-instrumentalist
Finn Scholes
, and producer/guitarist
Tom Healy
, but it features appreciably livelier, lusher arrangements.
Fullbrook
's beguiling vocal tone -- which is warm and gentle in the folk tradition, but textured -- is still front and center of each track in tandem with her folk-styled melodies, but on the opening title track, accompanying her voice and deft fingerpicking are Mellotron, electric guitar, and, eventually, a more assertive rhythm section than was featured on her previous releases. Elsewhere, the freer-formed and even lusher "One Million Flowers" takes a psychedelic turn. The track's surprises include shifting meters and a brief but memorable upright bass solo midway through. Sparer entries include the haunted acoustic guitar ballad "School of Design" and "Bounty," which features ethereal vintage folk with adventurous chord progressions a la
Vashti Bunyan
. A highlight among an album with nothing close to a mailed-in song is "Holograms," a tune that evokes a subtle mix of
Carole King
,
Joni Mitchell
, daydreams, and childhood crushes. The album's breezy complexity is just one of its charms, but a defining one, along with
's distinctly lyrical vocal lines. With a handful of impressive releases already under their belt,
have outdone themselves here, with a full set of compellingly crafted songs that are enriched rather than overwhelmed by the fuller sound. ~ Marcy Donelson