Bombadil, Darlingside

"Quirky, multi-textured, wildly inventive, eclectic, and hugely enjoyable." "...a combination of open-minded chamber folk and the bright and sunny pop music of the 1960s." "Syd Barrett meets The Beatles." These are just some of the media accolades used to describe Bombadil, a most critically-acclaimed band that, over the past year or so has been building a steady buzz, catching the attention and support of media outlets like the New York Times, NPR, and Diffuser.


Managed by the same team that steers the career of The Avett Brothers, the North Carolina-based Bombadil - Daniel Michalak (bass, piano, harmonica, vocals), James Phillips (drums, vocals), and Stuart Robinson (piano, ukulele, vocals) - produced and recorded their new album, Hold On (March 24, 2015/Ramseur Records) over a nine-month period in 2014, scheduling the sessions into the spare moments between tour dates. The album is an amalgamation of rapturous harmonies, sparkling instrumentals, sharp, poignant songwriting, and layers of imaginative arrangements that show off the band's folk roots, but with traces of funk, country, rap, R&B, and New Wave-inspired dance beats. Hold On is an album that surveys the terrain of love with songs full of hope and ironic humor.


The songs on Hold On, all written by Michalak, Phillips, and Robinson, allowed each to bring his own personality to the mix. "Each of us has different styles so combining them gives us a unique sound," said Michalak. "I get a lot of my inspiration from books and authors like Ernest Hemingway, Ronald Dahl, or Shel Silverstein...James and Stuart get their inspiration from music, science/math, and computer programming." Unique indeed.


Dolph Ramseur, head of Ramseur Records/Management, discovered Bombadil on the band's MySpace page, caught their live show and signed them. He helped the group book tours, hone their sound and make records, including the Bombadil EP in 2006, A Buzz, A Buzz in 2008 and Tarpits and Canyonlands in 2009, the record that has often been referred to as "the album that should have made [Bombadil] famous." Just prior to its release, Michalak, considered Bombadil's main driving force, was diagnosed with neural tension, an ailment that caused him to lose the use of his hands. Consequently, Bombadil couldn't tour or promote Tarpits; the album was stillborn and, with other added band complications, Bombadil took a hiatus. After several years of therapy, Michalak was able to return to Bombadil for the band's 2013 album Metrics of Affection, a release that again was showered with great reviews: "It's tough to be truly original while still creating catchy pop tunes, and this band manages to do just that..." "Bombadil exerts a natural magic for telling tall tales with a splendid tendency towards casual detail."


After an 18 month period of intense touring and songwriting, Bombadil has crafted a record packed with unforgettable melodies, imaginative sonic landscapes, and irresistible harmonies, making Hold On a "do not miss this one" event.

Darlingside is a Massachusetts-based indie folk quartet. With four distinct voices clustered around a single microphone, their tightly-arranged tunes draw from the unexpected, featuring strains of bluegrass, classical, and barbershop. Accompanied by an arsenal of classical strings, guitars, mandolin, and percussion, these four close friends swap instruments from song to song, keeping audiences across the country on the edge of their seats.

Darlingside is…
Don Mitchell: guitar, vocals
Auyon Mukharji: mandolin, violin, vocals
Harris Paseltiner: cello, guitar, bass, vocals
David Senft: vocals, bass guitar, guitar