Six years in the making, Scottish duo The Savings and Loan finally released their dark and stunning full-length debut Today I Need Light. Singer-songwriter/poet Martin Donnelly (guitar, percussion, vocals; formerly of Eska) and multi-instrumentalist/recording engineer Andrew Bush (piano, guitars) play spare down-tempo acoustic folk. Donnelly’s gravelly baritone is primary instrument around which all the songs revolve, reveling in classic Glasgow themes of alcohol, religion, faith and redemption in a manner that conjures Leonard Cohen. Today I Need Light delivers both originals and a couple of reimagings, sampling a spoken word poem by fellow Glaswegian Tom Leonard and a twist on the traditional Irish song, “The Star of the County Down”; standout singles include “Swallows”, “Met a Storm.” – Written by JFelton
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