Lost In the Trees – A Church That Fits Our Needs ALBUM REVIEW

Lost in the Trees tells a gut-wrenchingly beautiful story in their third album A Church That Fits Our Needs. Ari Picker’s distinctive voice floats through stanzas of ambitious poetry as the gentle harmonies and powerful instrumentals add emotion to the story. Stanzas become days, days become chapters, chapters become a novel most people would let collect dust in a closet, but Picker flaunts it. Exposing pages of death, cancer, and suicide as a bittersweet work of art, leaving listeners fulfilled yet asking for more.

By the fourth track it becomes clear how awe-inspiring all these instruments playing at once can be as lyrics of his mother’s twins dying at childbirth pull at your heartstrings. While an orchestra of strings hits their stride, the female harmonies stagger ever so slightly right as Picker’s vocals hit new highs in my opinion the strongest track of the album Golden Eyelids sending chills down my spine each time I listen to the record. Flipping the LP over will lead to heartbreak. The first track This Dead Bird Is Beautiful reminds me of my first pet dying when I was a child. As depressing as that moment was staring at the creature I loved most, as it lay motionless, I still had a glimmer of hope in my mind that I would find resolution. The same for this track, although the lyrics are of depression, the sound slowly builds from peaceful to serene. This quiet and composed sound swirls into Garden a fast growing work of musical genius setting up the conclusion to the story. The final track Vines acts less like a conclusion but rather as the beginning to a new story. Slowly instruments fade out as the final line is repeated. “Am I Helpless? I trust you… but where are we walking to?”

I’m biased towards Lost In The Trees being nothing short of gods at what they do, but A Church That Fits Our Needs has left me dazed. I feel it is a step above their previous two albums I may be alone in this since their sophomore album All Alone In An Empty House is loved by their fan base. Decide for yourself, here’s the video for Red directed by the band. Don’t forget to catch Lost In The Trees as they tour promoting their newest album this spring.

Album Rating: 4.6/5.0

Albrum Review by: Coleman Nicholls