CD: WM06
RELEASED: 2000
LABEL: Words On Music

01. A Paper Gift
02. Alida
03. The First Name on Your Dance Card
04. Twisting the Apple Stem
05. A Wink and Curtsy
06. Song for Your Leave-Taking
07. Me in Your Past Tense
08. Beside the Meadowgrass
09. Winter, 1988
10. A Girl's Last Daydream
11. Promising Young Actress

If ever an album was entitled to proclaim its mastery of gentle simplicity, that album is A Paper Gift. Elegant and heartbreaking, the music recalls the softest moments of Yo La Tengo combined with the textured string sounds of composer Debussy. It is pop music at its most vulnerable and sweet, and it is entirely engaging. Continuing with their trend of placing once famous film stars on their covers, Motion Picture offers Carroll Baker this time around (Deborah Kerr and Claire Bloom were previous cover girls), setting the mood for songs that could double as the scores to classic black and white romance films. Lyrically, the songs are as tender as the music created to accompany them -- often painfully blissful, and occasionally gut-wrenching. This is as close to classic drama as it gets. The words set up short stories that closely resemble old time screenplays, complete with narrative and dialogue: "Will I see you again?" "Well, that all just depends... a bow and handshake's a start but they won't win my heart or my kisses. You've got to dally in kind and learn how to live with near misses." ("A Wink And Curtsy"). With the help of a litany of talented musicians, songwriter/vocalist Eric Ostermeier has created a time machine of sorts, fueled by his obsession with a simpler and more romantic bygone era. It's hard to single out standout tracks on an album that's best considered as a single multi-faceted piece, but a few speak slightly louder than others. If you aren't profoundly moved by "Alida", a terribly sad ode to Alida Valli of The Third Man, or touched by "Song For Your Leave-Taking", which is full of non-clichéed thoughts on unrequited love and its consequences.

Influences / Similar Artists:
Red House Painters, Belle & Sebastian, Felt