Press
“Songs evoking a sense of mystery are often missing from today's music scene, but they are the lifeblood of this hauntingly brilliant Chicago act.” -Steve Morse
Associated Press: Many of the lyrics on “Myths and Mortals” date back more than a century, which is why the New Zeitgeist is singing of fairies, fables and linnet’s wings. This is real roots music that connects Dublin and Austin.
Steve Morse (Longtime Boston Globe, Independent Review): Songs evoking a sense of mystery are often missing from today's music scene, but they are the lifeblood of this hauntingly brilliant Chicago act. Anchored by singers Jen Reilly and Eddy Bluma, the group delves into everything from mystical folk tales to adapting timeless poems by Carl Sandburg and William Butler Yeats. The enchanting, electro-acoustic soundscapes move from Celtic folk-rock to soulful country in the vein of Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons (the song "Desert Rose" evokes Parsons' legendary "Hickory Wind"), to the more determined rock of Bluma's "The Ghost Trail." Reilly has a supple, emotionally riveting voice that suggests the legendary Sandy Denny of Fairport Convention. She mesmerizes throughout, whether on her self-written "Kingdom Highway" or the public domain "Song of the Wandering Aengus," where her vocal takes a flight into the heavens and leaves you completely in awe. Hands down, this is one of the best new albums of 2017.
Country Standard Time: Like the Handsome Family and forlorn folksters of an earlier era, Reilly and Bluma harbor the spirits that dwell in the hidden hollows of Appalachia and the dust-blown stretches of far western prairies. There's a mournful sadness that seeps through these songs like the wind through a creaky screen door, all barren emotion and weary resignation. Reilly wails and moans in ways that elevate these plaintive melodies to a higher purpose, giving songs such as "The Ghost Trail" and "Old Hammerin' Bill" a vivid tone and trapping that's as darkly descriptive as the names imply. Reilly and Bluma are old souls in every sense - stoic, solid and sincere, bound to a tireless tradition that serves both the imagery and their intentions very well.
The Morton Report (Jeff Berger): Good luck guessing which three of the 11 tracks here date from the 1800s; they sound no more or less timeless than the originals on this album, which features vocals and poetic lyrics by a Chicago-based duo: Jen Reilly, who sounds redolent of Judy Collins, and Eddy Bluma. If you like the work of such artists as Fairport Convention, Renaissance, and Richard and Linda Thompson, give this well-honed collection a listen.
Goldmine Magazine: Chicago duo The New Zeitgeist skillfully meld assorted roots genres on “Myths and Mortals.”
No Depression: Jen & Eddy of THE NEW ZEITGEIST manage to meld diverse influences that provide consistently ethereal Americana from one tune to the next, pretty dreamy stuff.