Presale begins on Tuesday, 5/16 at 10:00 AM with promo code distributed by the Artist. Sales open to the public on Friday, 5/19 at 1:00 PM.
The Parlor Room + Signature Sounds Presents
Darlingside w/ Caitlin Canty
at the Academy of Music (Northampton, MA)
Friday, December 15th
DARLINGSIDE
Everything Is Alive, Darlingside’s fourth LP, marks a subtle but remarkable departure for the Boston-based quartet NPR once described as “exquisitely arranged, literary minded, baroque folk-pop.” While the album retains much of the lushness and sophistication of Extralife (2018) and Fish Pond Fish (2020), the band’s latest work decisively exposes and differentiates the individual voices of the four songwriters—a daring reinvention for a group known for ubiquitous vocal harmonies. Grappling with change both personal and universal, with quandaries domestic and existential, Everything Is Alive is an album about loss and the struggle for a semblance of redemption.
Comprised of Don Mitchell, Auyon Mukharji, Harris Paseltiner and David Senft, four likeminded multi-instrumentalists who first met at Williams College in 2009, Darlingside’s career has been defined by the elegance of their compositions and the unity of their four voices. Their talent for harmony and melodic world-building is part of what garnered praise from outlets like NPR, Rolling Stone and The New Yorker, and what has created demand worldwide for their extraordinary live performances. Becoming beautifully unindividualized has, in other words, worked very well for Darlingside in the past. With a vigor and discipline more common to graduate-level writing workshops than to indie rock, Darlingside has, over the years, experimented with all manners of idiosyncratic methods for elevating and upholding a truly democratic process of songwriting—processes that include multiple rounds of group writing and recording exercises—all with the aim of escaping the trap that bands with multiple songwriters often fall into: ego-driven infighting and artistic incoherence.
On Everything Is Alive, then, Darlingside is taking a risk. Nudged by the limitations created by pandemic isolation, as well as through other more voluntary catalysts, the album, which was produced and recorded by the band and mixed by Tucker Martine (My Morning Jacket, Sufjan Stevens, Iron and Wine), foregrounds in a sustained and heretofore untried way the individual voices of each member. Where once the harmonies formed a hard-won sonic unification, Everything Is Alive showcases the four singers as they alternate (more or less) song for song, an approach that rewards listeners with a sense of personal ownership and, therefore, a new degree of intimacy and nuance.
Don’t misunderstand: Everything Is Alive is still very much a collaborative effort—many of the same meticulous rituals and exercises went into this effort as went into Extralife and Fish Pond Fish. The difference here is that the band has given itself permission to plumb new depths, to add extra dimension to what was already a highly dialed-in aesthetic. And the results are compelling, not only due to the intimacy itself, but for the way such intimacy is counterpointed or juxtaposed against Darlingside’s trademark lusciousness. Present still are the beds of enveloping harmonies, as in the stunning (mostly) a cappella “How Long Again.” Retained also are the textured polyrhythms, the infectious body percussion, a triumphant horn section to bolster the earworm chorus of “Baking Soda” and a sobering cello quartet to elevate the heartbreak of “Lose The Keys.” The difference is that on Everything Is Alive these moments have been set against quieter, and thus contrasting, depths of solitude and vulnerability.
CAITLIN CANTY
Caitlin Canty is an American singer/songwriter whose music carves a line through folk, blues, and country ballads. Her voice was called “casually devastating” by the San Francisco Chronicle and NPR Music describes her songs as having a “haunting urgency.”
This event is participating in the Card to Culture Program! They will be offering 10 seats at a discounted price of $10 to any patrons with a valid EBT, WIC, or ConnectorCare card. To purchase these tickets, please visit or call the box office Tuesday through Friday between 3:00pm and 6:00pm. Limit 4 tickets per cardholder per show. Tickets are sold on a first-come-first-serve basis. Find out more at: https://massculturalcouncil.org/organizations/card-to-culture/
The Academy will hold all shows at full capacity and this show will require no additional COVID precautions or requirements. Click here to read our health and safety policy. Fees always apply to purchase. Tickets can be purchased in person or over the phone Tuesday through Friday 3pm to 6pm. Tickets can also be purchased online at any time for no additional cost/fee. All Sales are final. If you have any questions about accessibility, please contact the box office at boxoffice@aomtheatre.com or (413) 584-9032 X105.
Show Date/Time:
Friday, December 15, 2023 at 8:00 pm
Doors at 7:30 pm
Ticket Prices:
$20.00 - $30.00 ($27.16 - $37.86 after Fees)
Where/ How Tickets Can be Purchased:
Purchase online using the button on the top right (scroll to the bottom of the page if using mobile), or you may visit or call our box office at 413-584-9032 ext.105.
Box Office Hours are 3pm - 6pm, Tuesday - Friday. Service fees always apply with purchase.
