Poor Pretender
Self-Released, 2022
9/10
A Milwaukee outfit comprised of Kat Wodtke (vocals, acoustic guitar), Andrew Koenig (guitars), Nick Lang (drums), Samual Odin (bass) and with Eva Nimmer (backing vocals) and Erik Koskinen (electric guitar), this is a very thoughtful debut of love, heartache and survival.
The title track starts the listen with Wodtke’s stirring vocals alongside a hazy atmosphere that benefits from playfully plucked bass and light drumming, and “Half Love” follows with warm guitar and expressive singing making for a breezy version of Americana.
The halfway point belongs to “Quiet”, which is quite intimate in its bare beauty that uses backing vocals strategically, while “The Narrows” is a bit more forceful, where folk and indie-rock meet at a poetic intersection with some soulfulness and grit.
Closer to the end, “Take It Out” is both bare and full, and embraces lovely vocal harmonies amid the flowing roots ideas, and “Lonerman” exits with a very pretty and eloquent departure of light, agile and memorable song craft.
A listen full of modern folklore and that comes with a lot of heart, it’s not hard to think of Neko Case or Lucinda Williams when listening to Poor Pretender, and it’s quite apparent that this Wisconsin band are destined for great things based on this exceptional first effort.
Travels well with: Jeremy Nail- Behind The Headlights; Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light- Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light