There has always been a rich tradition of familial harmonies in music, especially that of brothers in reality or in spirit. From the Louvin Brothers to the Everly Brothers to Peter and Gordan through to Simon and Garfunkel and on to The Lost Brothers. This duo of Mark McCausland and Oisin Leech fit easily into the established pattern of tight vocal harmonies that complement each other. In the end the key factor is the songs and the duo writing perfectly suits the occasion. On record they deliver a full sound that is played by themselves and three other key players that included producer Colin Elliot and Shez Sheridan. They also, on occasion, use strings and brass to further complement the sound. Recorded in Sheffield last year they appear to have a bright future in front of them that can only grow in time. So Long John Fante is an easy and enjoyable listening experience that compliments their more simplistic two voices, two guitar live set -up.
The nature of what they do means there is a certain overall mood and tone to the songs, with each track following easily from the previous song that sometimes makes you want to hear one or other voice take the lead rather than always being sung in unison. But that may be beside the point, as their sound is what it is and So Long John Fante should be evaluated on it's strengths and it's songs. The highlights at this time include The Goodbye Kid, Golden Dawn and the more uptempo lap-steel and stringed Bells They Wont Ring. All of which The Lost Brothers a great find for those who haven't discovered then before.