Little Tybee
Humorous to Bees
Paper Garden Records
By Al Kaufman
Little Tybee is more of a music collective than a band. They are a group of friends on the Georgia coast who enjoyed making music together. They brought their act to Atlanta, where anywhere from five to 10 of them can perform at any given time. Yet they know each other so well that they sound great no matter who shows up.
The glue that holds this mish-mash together is Brock Scott, the songwriter, vocalist, pianist and guitarist for the band. Scott is a good hippie with an affinity for happy music with bright melodies. Humorous to Bees, the band’s second album, has a relaxed, island sound to it, sort of like an acoustic Vampire Weekend. Even their protest song, “Strong Ears,” has an upbeat, folksy melody. And “Passion Seekers” can’t get be any sunnier. Scott, harmonizing with Adron Parnassum, unabashedly proclaims, “They’re all waiting for the sunlight/I’ll stay here under the moon light.” It’s unadulterated joy.
But there is more to Little Tybee than childlike joy and cuteness. “Nero” has a slow burning intensity to it, and “Revolutionary” has a dreamy folk sound that evokes an early Suzanne Vega. There are some cool, Danny Elfman-like flourishes to “In Range,” which very well may have been written by Scott while watching a Tim Burton film.
The CD closes with “Holding Stones,” in which Nirvana Kelly’s violin and Scott’s piano create a more lush, orchestral-pop sound. Like the rest of the CD, it makes you want to snuggle with your honey on a blanket as you listen to the waves lap the shore. Not a bad feeling to evoke.
Little Tybee hold their record release party at The EARL on April 2.
