A Sea as a Shore

The Horns of Happiness are entirely songwriter Aaron Deer. As core member of both the Impossible Shapes and John Wilkes Booze, Deer is a ferocious live performer and inventive collaborator in the studio. For his second album under the Horns of Happiness moniker, he showcases his prowess on virtually every instrument (with some help from Impossible Shapes members Chris Barth, Jason Groth, Mark Rice, and Peter King). Like a glorious pillow fight in the heavens between Paul & Linda McCartney and Grandaddy, "A Sea As A Shore" is full of fuzzed out psychedelic pop songs composed with acoustic & electric guitars, pumping organs, and dreamy vocals, interspersed with instrumental interludes where pianos mingle, banjos bark, and tape loops shuffle. Built upon simple, spontaneous parts, and sculpted onto the tape, the songs as a whole guide the listener to the revelation that music -- in its most humble state --can transport the listener to another place. Fans of Maher Shalal Hash Baz, the Microphones and the Olivia Tremor Control will find a good friend in "A Sea As A Shore."