As much as Book Club’s lineup has shifted and evolved over the years, at its center has always stood guitarist, singer, and songwriter Robbie Horlick. In the ironic social landscape that mainstream “folk” now resides in, much of what represents the genre on the radio today feels more like pretentious pop-rock than anything else. With Horlick at the head, however, the multi-faceted frontman has kept the band humble and, thankfully enough, utterly folk throughout all of Book Club’s renditions. There may be a contemporary twist here or there that carries the music along, to be certain. Yet, this is more along the lines of Cash meeting Ledbetter than Led Zeppelin meeting a banjo.
“Space Between the Days” soaks itself in Atlanta sunshine, instantaneously evocative of the sort of rural landscape that Horlick has been invoking into Book Club’s songs since the beginning. It comes easy, with his plaintive trademark vocals carrying a certain wistfulness that, when paired with the song’s piano, cello, violin, guitar, and drums, makes it feel like a bonafide windswept number in a string band’s set. Accentuating the tune with her own gorgeous vocals, Lauren Love sings alongside Horlick as they paint this Americana-marked picture together.
Book Club is gearing up to release their third LP, Dust of Morning, on 6 April. It is available for pre-order on Bandcamp.