Bonsai – Bonsai EP (Bonsai)

Former L.A. and Hawaii resident, now NYC-based songstress Simone Stevens has a sumptuous, sultry voice that immediately impresses – as I discovered on her superb 2011 solo LP Right on Time, and on the two albums she fronted as trio Fiery Blue (a long-distance collaboration with Austin, TX multi-instrumentalist Gabe Rhodes and San Diego, CA songwriter Paul Marsteller), 2010’s Our Secret and 2011’s Fiery Blue. (Not to mention the two times I saw her play live this year in Manhattan: a solo show at Pianos’ Upstairs Lounge, and Bonsai’s record release show at Rockwood Music Hall.) On her new group’s debut five-songer, Stevens is joined by her Right on Time partner Greg McMullen on guitar and pedal steel, along with Peter Lalish and Dan Molad of Brooklyn five-piece Lucius (though Bonsai’s officially a trio, with Stevens, McMullen, and Bryan Bisordi on drums). As before, Stevens’s thick, rich pipes still sound rustic and rootsy. But Bonsai’s music tones down the alt country/folk of past releases, in favor of dreamy mood-pop, with Molad’s plush production affectionately bathing the EP in a shrouded yet sonorous ambience.

The opening “Bonsai Trees” combines a gentle, off-kilter acoustic and piano melody with clickety-clack percussion that mimics the inner mechanisms of an old grandfather clock. On it, she likens her lover and herself to those strange-looking Japanese miniature trees: constantly needing care and attention. Meanwhile, “When it Rains” contrasts Stevens’s resonant, echoed vocals and a steely, wind-chime guitar with submerged, skipping rhythms, bubbly synths, and shards of “Eleanor Rigby”-esque cello (or bowed bass, since no cellist is credited). And on the enchanting, island-flavored “I Fashion You’re A Dreamer,” you can almost envision hula dancers shimmying over weightless clouds, as her soft, Chrissie Hynde-like coo and a glistening, surf-like guitar waft seductively over balmy, dampened drums.

Throughout, Stevens’s honest, open-book lyrics and wise, thoughtful words give glimpses into different sides of her cultured and congenial personality. The playful, chugging “I Like You Man” (which recalls The Lemonheads’ “If I Could Talk I’d Tell You”) finds her smitten and energized about a new suitor with a stoic disposition and a strange best friend, while on the twangy, early-morning-misty “Messed Up,” she bravely bares a sullen soul scarred by a history of rocky relationships. As on her other LPs, Stevens’s singing is the main attraction. But Bonsai’s arresting arrangements and ear-pleasing embellishments are like icing atop a lovingly-crafted cake. (www.simone-stevens-nyly.squarespace.com, www.cdbaby.com/cd/bonsai)

Listen to the EP at Soundcloud

Bonsai record release show at NYC’s Rockwood Music Hall, 6/11/14. L-R: Greg McMullen, Bryan Bisordi, Simone Stevens, Benjamin Campbell