2008 saw the start of the label, the release of Dark Dark Dark and Between The Pine’s albums, and European and US tours for Dark Dark Dark. S&D’s plans for 2009 will start to be announced in the coming weeks, with European releases for our albums, more tour dates, and new artists to be signed!

Thank you so much for all your support. 2009 will be a big year for S&D, so stay tuned!

Check the Press Section for all the latest album reviews, interviews and show reviews for Dark Dark Dark and Between The Pine!

As promised, here’s the latest SADTape, a monthly mix of stuff that we’ve been listening to:

Lo-Fidelity All-Stars – Kasparov’s Revenge
Animal Collective – My Girls
Songs Ohia – Being In Love
Brian Eno – Baby’s On Fire
Many Mansions – Oneness
Shane Hall – Astronaut
David Bowie – Here Comes The Night
Blondie – Heart Of Glass
Television – Venus
Ween – Dr. Rock

Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin, the second album recorded by James Diotte under the Between the Pine moniker, is an exercise in mood, with the pervasive feeling being contemplative sobriety. The album logs in at a lean thirty-eight minutes but nevertheless feels expansive, as Diotte utilizes a variety of instruments, found sounds, and help from a variety of guests, including wife Robin Toste, to create a full narrative landscape. Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin is dense, ambiguous and sometimes unsettling, lovingly constructed and haunted by Diotte’s presence.

As with his debut, Diotte is unquestionably the main presence on the album. His voice, which he describes aptly as a “splinter” gives his music its point of view. After a brief instrumental introduction on “Clarinets,” Diotte appears on “People We Were Before.” His vocal delivery is not typical or easily accessible; the first couple of listens sound as if Smeagle landed a recording contract. As one song bleeds into another and one listen  follows the next, a simple truth is revealed about Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin. Diotte is well aware that, even though he might be working with a limited instrument, he can use it to good effect in creating the mood he wants on his songs.

When his vocals are considered just another part of the larger picture, Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin emerges as a creation that achieves its beauty and purpose from the fact that it arises from imperfect pieces. Diotte’s vocals, a repeated banjo or recorder line, and even seemingly missed notes at the end of a song bleed into one another, even from song to song to fortify the dreamy, disconnected environment that is the album’s most compelling aspect. Between the Pine is definitely an acquired taste, but Diotte’s careful work is the type of art that repays investment on the part of the listener.

Ever thought the world needs more singer/songwriters who make sad, experimental music alone in their basements and make band names for themselves even though they don’t have a band?  No, me neither, but Between the Pine is well worth a listen despite falling in this category.

James Diotte, the man behind the Pine moniker, recorded Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin in his basement studio with some vocal help from his wife and his father on guitar.  With found sounds and haunting vocals, Friends is reminiscent of Phil Elvrum back when he was The Microphones, but the album is far from the impromptu sound that Elvrum usually creates.  Instead, Diotte has carefully constructed his songs with layered string arrangements, keyboard, and murky guitars, and manages to make songs about sandwiches and Coca-Cola sound very significant.  The star tracks include the short instrumental “Clarinets” along with “I know You Can Hear Us” and the album’s title track.

Friends, Foes, Kith, and Kin, the second album from Between the Pine, is full of instrumentation that’s beautiful, soothing, and more complicated than what you’d expect from a one-man-band in his basement.

http://www.boomkat.com/item.cfm?id=150236

Loose and organic post-folk songwriting from James Diotte, whose music dwells in the the same sort of brooding depths plumbed by Mount Eerie or Phosphorescent, whilst always pushing the arrangements down the road least travelled – layering instruments atmospherically and in a most un-singer-songwriterly fashion.

Creeping, slow-burning and haunting are the buzz-clichés that spring to mind when listening to Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin.  As hackneyed as they are, they’re descriptions I find myself compelled to use.  This sophomore release for Rhode Island-based James Diotte, aka Between the Pine, is a carefully crafted record, an American indie epic converging with gentle, traditional British folk.  Nothing stands out, nothing catches, or hooks into your psyche.  But, as the closing bars of ‘The Wall & The Moon’ fade to black, it’s easy to find yourself snapping back to reality, having become entranced in the album’s subtle, underlying beauty.

There’s an undeniable quality to Between the Pine’s new offering, one that shines through its clever instrumentation, ethereal vocal melodies and droning rhythms.  It’s also a very deliberate, held-back collection, with a coy sincerity to its gentle ambience and low tempo.  Its highlights come in the unlikely guise of tracks such as ‘People We Were Before’, a warbling dream of a song with thematic borrowings from the post-rock genre; and in the more immediate, keyboard-driven ‘Enjoy Yourself’, evoking memories of Radiohead’s more experimental work.  But at its weakest, Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin begins to sound a little uninspired and somewhat derivative.  Many of its more upbeat passages are reminiscent of The Shins’ more laid back sounds, but without the emotional pull that drives the latter.  In fact, in its more generic moments, Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin fails to encourage much of a response at all, and long segments fly by unnoticed, merging together into one perfectly palatable yet ultimately unimportant stretch of music.

There’s an apparent self-awareness to the album, one that’s necessary to develop such an effective mood. Its admirable successes rest largely on Diotte’s clear vision and occasional bravery.  But, ultimately, it’s a record that struggles to engage on any meaningful level.  An album with soul, unquestionably; it’s just a shame it lacks the charm to go with it.
71%

Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin is out now on Sad Music

in stores now!

iTunes featured Between The Pine today, on the front page, as well as in their “Alternative” and “Folk” sections. Someone up there likes us!

You can also buy the album at  AmazonMP3, eMusic and sad-music.net (CD and MP3). And, of course, your local record store. If they don’t have it, tell them to order it from Revolver USA, our distributor!

“upon closer listen, the meticulous craft and delicately balanced melodies and ambiance of Friends reveals that Jim Diotte has a rewarding ear for detail” – CMJ

available NOW! Click here for the CD, here for the 320kbps MP3.

You can also get a special combo deal right now – Dark Dark Dark’s “The Snow Magic” and Between The Pine’s “Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin” together for $18, US shipping included! only $4 more for international shipping. Click here to buy the combo.

Dark Dark Dark’s tour started last night in Madison, WI, and after a session at Daytrotter today (more on that when it’s posted!), they head to Heaven Gallery in Chicago. Click here for the remaining tourdates.

AND finally, the December SAD Music Mixtape is up! here’s the tracklist:

Between The Pine – The Great Intoxication (David Byrne Cover)
Uke Of Spaces Corners County – This Old World
Callers – Rone
Deer Tick – Baltimore Blues No. 1
Smog – Held
The Tallest Man On Earth – Steal Tomorrow
Bert Jansch – I Have No Time
Gracious Calamity – The Song That Grows Like A Vine
Vandaveer – However Many Takes It Takes
Rodriguez – Sugar Man

BETWEEN THE PINE: Friend, Foes, Kith, and Kin
Dec 5, 2008
By Michael Tedder
Rhode Island songwriter James Diotte has it all figured out. As evidenced by the sophomore album from his group Between The Pine, it’s clear that he realizes that if one makes their songs simple but pretty enough, and then slathers enough sonic gauze onto the mix, even lyrics about sandwiches and coca-cola will sound haunting. Diotte’s circular, ringing guitar playing and subdued voice (supplemented with the occasional gust of guest harmony) along with the occasional keyboard and string break congeal together into an album of idealized hangover rock.

Friend, Foes, Kith, and Kin is actually a bit of a bargain. When played in the background after a hard day at work, it functions as a superior balm for your anxieties. (Hushed harmonies and hazy guitars are often good for what ails you.) But upon closer listen, the meticulous craft and delicately balanced melodies and ambiance of Friend reveals that Diotte has a rewarding ear for detail that only becomes apparent with repeated plays.

here’s the tracklist for this month’s tape:
Dark Dark Dark – The Benefit Of The Doubt
David Bowie – Always Crashing In The Same Car
I’m From Barcelona – Music Killed Me (Tom Inhaler Remix)
M.I.A – 20 Dollar
Buck 65 – Out Of Focus
Between The Pine – Enjoy Yourself
Why? – Fatalist Palmistry
These United States – First Sight (live from Daytrotter)
David Byrne – The Great Intoxication
Many Mansions – The Light Inside

Between The Pine - Friends, Foes, Kith And Kin

“Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin” is the second album from Rhode Island’s Between The Pine, and the second album to be released on Supply And Demand Music! You can read the artist bio here, listen to a few new songs on the music player on the top of the page, and download the first single, Coca-Cola by clicking the link below!

Between The Pine – Coca-Cola

Tracklist:

1) Clarinets
2) People We Were Before
3) Coca-Cola
4) Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin
5) Cut The Crap
6) I Know You Can Hear Us
7) My Voice Is A Splinter
8) Enjoy Yourself
9) We Should Not Be Allowed
10) The Wall & The Moon