Artist: CloudRun
Album Title: Anything In Particular
Label: Independent
Bones:
Summary: Thankfully free of patchouli oil
Reviewed By: 'Disco' Stu McPhee

Here I was, covering what could well be the shittiest rock festival; bored out of my mind as I begrudgingly consume this mindless and quite clearly amateurish excuse for live music. So what led me to this predicament? Why did I get the obvious short straw? Penance perhaps? If I were a religious man then fair cop, but seems I'm not then I'm not buying it.

My being here was the result of a magazine I write for asking me to review the event. I lived the closest so the honour was bestowed upon me. I don't hold any grudges though as I am glad to get anything thrown my way. But things were looking grim by mid-afternoon to say the least.

I am however a positive man, one who believes in an upside to anything. It was a long shot I know but I was determined to find it. Suddenly a burst of music seeped into my aural canal and my senses immediately pinpointed the location of this delight. The acoustic stage, of course! Though I had every reason to be sceptical as previous bands on the acoustic bill seemingly made Pete Murray look not only talented but entertaining as well. Forgive me if this tidbit of music I just heard was a false alarm of sorts.

I checked the line-up; a band called CloudRun apparently occupied the stage. My immediate thoughts of them based on the name alone conjured up images of vanilla scented candles lighting up the stage and the faint waft of Patchouli Oil in the air. Despite these preconceptions I took a punt and went to check them out. If anything it would get me far away from listening to whatever "I'm in pain because daddy cut off my allowance" band that were currently venting their pubescent angst on the main stage.

I leg it to the Acoustic stage (read: Arts and Crafts Shed/Hall) where I'm faced not with a bunch of alternative lifestyle individuals but three beautiful people playing what only can be described as utterly beautiful music.

Mesmerised, I make sure to grab a copy of their E.P. 'Anything In Particular', that they are flogging which I thought was the least I could do. On the way home, I throw the CD in the player, casting aside my "Learn To Speak Maltese" disc for a half-hour or so. The songs that make up 'Anything I Particular' are rich on emotion but are backed by technical proficiency in the trio's playing that you begin to doubt this is their debut release.

The band clearly gels as a unit, complementing each other in their harmonies as well as their instrumentation. While it is a disservice to the other members of the group to point out just one of them in particular, you can't help but comment on the angelic and pure vocals of lead singer Bron Robbins. As a result, you really can't be mad at her for nicking Jewel's singing voice. Not that Miss Kilcher is missing it ever since she turned her hand to skank pop.

With the excellent Lorna Sherwin on double bass and Dave Callanan on Guitar (though I assumed he had a Scandinavian name considering his looks. Another myth busted!) CloudRun are a triple threat of quality acoustic pop. The haunting melancholy like on opener 'Moving On' and the impressive 'Alone' allows the group to reach a much wider stretch on the FM bandwidth then most other artists.

Here's hoping they get there.