Pennsylvania band The Innocence Mission remain true to their ideals, and to themselves. The group has been making music for more than 30 years and their brand remains pure. Timeless and beyond the styles of the moment, the tunes of The Innocence Mission charm as always, and seem, even on this latest album, See You Tomorrow, compositions of simple beauty.
The release opens with the spry "The Brothers William Said", a bit of business that sounds like an old Joni Mitchell number, while "I Would Be There", with its jazzy piano hook, makes a more obvious connection to the sounds of Mitchell and her peers. Karen Peris still has a great voice, and selections like "On Your Side" are gentle and ruminative, perfectly suited to her talents. If the arrangements here on See You Tomorrow are fairly understated, that's okay since there's more space here to appreciate Karen's vocal talents. And while she's the star here, her husband Don elevates "Mary Margaret in Mid-Air" into something special, and something faintly reminiscent of the earliest wisps of chamber rock one heard emanating from the West Coast acts who were part of the Paisley Underground. Still, The Innocence Mission have always been a band with rather puritan tastes, and little of See You Tomorrow seems rushed, or not thoroughly considered. What the band sacrifice for safety, they earn back in the beauty of the pristine compositions.
See You Tomorrow is out tomorrow via Bella Union.
More details on The Innocence Mission via the band's official website, or the band's official Facebook page.
[Photo: The Innocence Mission]