Month of Sundays by The Chamber Strings (Review)

The sophomore effort from the Chicago quintet, The Chamber Strings, revels in orchestral pop reverie. Each track on Month of Sundays basks in pop fusions, heavy with lamentations from “Last Lovers” and “Let Me Live My Own Life” to “Our Dead Friends.” But before frontman Kevin Junior showcases the album’s themes, he gives us an instrumental, full of strings, a brass section and a graceful dip into a melancholy world on the title track.

“Make It Through the Summer” is the band’s first single and first slip into pop bliss. The song is armed with indelible harmonies and Carolyn Engelmann’s harpsichord, all glazed in metaphors of the seasons and the earth’s natural successions. But even finer is the follow-up. “For the Happy Endings” moves with a deeper tone, until it finds a hopeful chorus. “Tell me that I need you so much for this happy end,” Junior sings, sounding opaque and smooth. “Tell me what you want me to know.” It also is anchored by a harpischord and piano, but is driven by the soulful guitar lead. Reflective of the past with a heedful ear to the present, “It’s No Wonder” is typical of this band’s eloquence as Junior’s vocals are at his strongest: “I can’t go on and it’s no wonder/I can’t find things that you lost when you were young, so young.”

Chamber Strings’ rhythm cohorts are Anthony Illarde on drums and percussion and Jason Walker on bass. Tim Fowler contributes on guitars, organ and even a banjo (“Sleepy Night”). Engelmann also plays the piano and viola, while Junior further embellishes their sound with tubular bells and vibraphone. The lush arrangements are given a boost by a number of guest artists on the album. Most notable are jazz musicians Ken Vandermark on tenor sax and Jeb Bishop on trombone, as well as Eric Remschneider on cello (Yes, he supplied the cello on Smashing Pumpkins’ “Disarm”).

Whether letting the music take center stage on the mournful “Beautiful You” or using harmonies and strings as beautiful as “The Road Below“ ‘s message, the Chamber Strings have surpassed their debut effort Gospel Morning and found a niche in the soft terrain of the present music world.

Written by Gala M. Pierce.