Listen To This: Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke

When I hear good new music that doesn't even have a record associated with it, I'm sometimes tempted to keep it secret, to spring it upon the world when the record is finished.

Luckily, I soon come to my senses, recognizing that not only is that a stupid idea (I'm probably not the only one who knows), but it's a selfish one, of course. And since the sharing, communal nature of much of kids' music is one of its most appealing points, being selfish about good music seems, well, just so wrong.

And so I am happy to share this music from New Jersey-based Key Wilde. Key seems mostly drawn (pun unintended -- really) to the visual arts, but the seven songs from an upcoming CD (listen here) recorded as "Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke" show a playful musical side, too. A number of the songs have a loping folk-country feel, but "Favorite Names" is a fun multilingual punk tune, while "Rattling Can" is an awesome bluegrass re-envisioning of "Rattling Bog."

Fans of Frances England and Dan Zanes should definitely check the songs. (Which, I should note, have already received some airplay on Belinda & Hova's show. See what I mean? Somebody else knows.)

And then, yes, I will tell you when the CD finally comes out.

Comments

[Belinda]

Oh my gosh, yes, so great! Some label needs to snap them up! Plus, Key is a terrific illustrator, he could do all the album artwork. Anyone? Anyone?