Sean Kiely’s Unassuming Originality

Every so often, an artist comes along who’s capable of making a great first impression despite a long-burgeoning career. Sadly, without the benefit of a big name or a bigger marketing machine, the public doesn’t always have opportunity to find the music firsthand and the artist in question often goes unrecognized until and unless someone happens to stumble upon them and share them with others.

Such is the case with New Jersey-based Sean Kiely, whose new album Your Logo, My Logo is one of those sublime and unassuming efforts that sneaks up on you until you find it won’t let go.

A follow-up to Kiely’s digital-only debut Arch Envy (released under the name Sean0Sean), the new album is distinctly low key. It sounds something like early Avett Brothers effort, given its modest  arrangements and bare-bones production. Kiely himself describes the songs as “an intimate collection of alternative folk songs examining lyrical themes of love, death, confusion, and awe within our modern American culture,” and that heady description is borne out in these dramatic narratives.

The tunes are primarily performed by Kiely on guitar and Bobby McCullough on upright bass. “Nirvana, If Only” finds the duo picking up the pace, while the gradual acceleration of “This Might Be True,” with its brassy flourish, and the rapid fire of “Oh, The Old Days” add to the increasing energy as the album nears its conclusion.

A distinctly intriguing effort, Your Logo, My Logo effectively established Kiely’s talent and ought to make him one to watch in the months to come.