Paul Bergmann’s latest LP, The Other Side is released through Diggers Factory. To date, his twelve releases have ranged broadly across the landscape of the indie singer-songwriter. Early work in folk-pop, recorded while signed with Fairfax Recordings, gave way to folk punk, electro-piano and analogue psychedelia...

Paul Bergmann (Stars and Streams, Nothing at All) takes a lazy, laidback approach to The Other Side. It almost feels effortless... as though he wrote and recorded it in his sleep. For some, his mumbled, stumbling vocals may prove to be an annoying distraction they can't get past... but I urge you to fight through it, as the rewards are well worth it.

Tracks like 'On This Day (for So Long, at This Height)' and 'Diamond Fawn' have a Bowie quality to them. Elsewhere, 'Homeward Bound' has a trippy, ethereal feel, as Bergmann's vocals wrap around themselves before the music reaches a crescendo.

While this is certainly an album you might not totally enjoy on a first play through. It's certainly a slow burner, It's also a release that works best played from start to finish, rather than dipping in and out of, as there's a natural flow to the songs in the order they're presented.

This is an album you could easily overlook... but give it a chance. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

8

Nick Smithson