Four years after “though it were the kiss of death” raised the band’s profile in upstate New York, earning critical raves and extensive airplay on independent radio, the New Paltz , NY quintet The Sweet Clementines have released the sprawling “Lake Victoria.” Graceful and quirky, sweet and sour, overstuffed with melody lyrical imagination, the record is enlivened by the band’s traditional weapons of choice: vibraphones, violins, baroque vocal harmonies, and a dash of the electronic. In eight years of eccentric rocking, this band has cultured its own way of playing together: start with the experimental pop sense of The Beatles (or The Zombies, or XTC), color it with cabaret and circus, ala Tom Waits or Andrew Bird, and, now more than ever, venture into long forms, unafraid of either “J” word: jazz or jam, all in support of the literate, weird, and melancholic songs. The Sweet Clementines are principal songwriter and guitarist John Burdick, bassist Jason Sarubbi, drummer Matt Senzatimore, vocalist/violinist Marianne Tasick, and vibraphonist/keyboardist Paul Carroll

https://thesweetclementines.bandcamp.com