Crossing the borders of folk, blues, bluegrass, country, rock and roll, gospel, stomps and hollers, Rick DiDia and Aireene Espiritu invoke an evocative musical landscape that flows seamlessly through various breaks in mood, tempo and melody and makes the old sound new in an old sort of way.
Aireene, a native of the Philippines, plays a 1950’s Martin tenor ukulele, and crafts simple yet hauntingly beautiful songs that are highlighted by the strength and richness of her 'spot on' vocal delivery. Rick plays guitar in various
tunings and has developed a unique lap-style playing method that results in an intriguing array of chords, single note lead runs and sliding that looks as if he is chasing notes from one end of the neck to the other. Their rich mixture of personalities, cultures and musical approaches – one simple and the other complex - sets the tone for an unassuming duo that walks small but carries a big sound.
Their sound is made even larger by the near perfect pairing of their voices and their uncomplicated approach to performing which leaves few barriers between themselves, the song, and their audience.
On their first full-length studio release, the Ten Ton Feather, DiDia and Espiritu expand the scope of their musical horizons with help from some influential musical friends including, Scott Amendola, Bill Evans, Jon Evans, Brian Judd, Karen Goodman, Chad Manning, and Julie Wolf.
Hints of banjo, accordion, mandolin, organ, lap steel, piano, timple, and fiddle provide a lush backdrop from which their songs gracefully suspend. Between these layers different flavors begin to reveal themselves creating an odd pull to their songs. They sing their stories with an urgency as if their character’s welfare were dependent upon it. And the magic of the sadness in each tune rests in the redemptive powers of hope that lie just under their beautifully scared surface.
Sometimes bold and breathless, and at other times mercifully sweet and tender, at its heart is a depth of clarity and honesty that provides powerful continuity from one song to the next.
As accessible as it is unique, the fourteen gems on the Ten Ton Feather showcase Rick and Aireene doing what they do best: distilling the essence of many genres down with simplicity, and extracting unexpected riches as if they were all mined from the same vein.