Ever thought the world needs more singer/songwriters who make sad, experimental music alone in their basements and make band names for themselves even though they don’t have a band?  No, me neither, but Between the Pine is well worth a listen despite falling in this category.



James Diotte, the man behind the Pine moniker, recorded Friends, Foes, Kith and Kin in his basement studio with some vocal help from his wife and his father on guitar.  With found sounds and haunting vocals, Friends is reminiscent of Phil Elvrum back when he was The Microphones, but the album is far from the impromptu sound that Elvrum usually creates.  Instead, Diotte has carefully constructed his songs with layered string arrangements, keyboard, and murky guitars, and manages to make songs about sandwiches and Coca-Cola sound very significant.  The star tracks include the short instrumental “Clarinets” along with “I know You Can Hear Us” and the album’s title track.



Friends, Foes, Kith, and Kin, the second album from Between the Pine, is full of instrumentation that’s beautiful, soothing, and more complicated than what you’d expect from a one-man-band in his basement.