There are certain albums you immediately feel connected to after the first listen. For me, the debut LP Tracks from Brooklyn-based Ancient History was one of them. The moniker of Donald Ducote deems its sound “middle of the night red-wine and reefer music,” but to me it seems like something much more than that. Rather than a soundtrack to play in the background as you’re enjoying an evening with friends, Tracks seems like an album that deserves your undivided attention.
For Tracks, Ducote teamed up with engineer Jim Smith (The National) and bassist Paul Johnson (Beirut). The team successfully instilled a melancholic personality, not dissimilar from Elliot Smith, that provides a lot of the underlying foundation for the album. Ducote presents his vocals in a hushed and haunting way, which suits the moody nature of the instrumentation well.
“Subway Dream” is one of the standout tracks, with a driving beat and one of the more prominently catchy melodies on the album. Stream the song above and head over to Ancient History’s Bandcamp to listen to all of Tracks.