Heart Murmurs Vinyl

[S]weet, timeless songs about love, desire, death and grief — not, it would seem, the stuff of grandiose artistic ambition. And yet Messersmith stands out by trying harder, doing more and always reaching farther than it seems. 

As its title suggests, Heart Murmurs mostly traverses the terrain of love, but Messersmith scrutinizes it from as many angles as possible: The album traffics in thwarted desire ("It's Only Dancing"), stubborn devotion ("Tourniquet") and bad-boy self-flagellation ("Bridges") before 15 minutes have passed. Along the way, Messersmith tries on any number of perspectives — never more effectively than in the deceptively titled "I Want to Be Your One Night Stand." In a ballad worthy of Fountains of Wayne, another act with a gift for giving voice to stubborn strivers just trying to get by, Messersmith crafts a perfect two-minute ode to modest expectations.

But for the singer himself, that's where the modest expectations end: With its subtle strings and sly infectiousness, Heart Murmurs is no less than an attempt to craft a new batch of pop standards. Whether Messersmith succeeds depends mostly on how many people are lucky enough to hear him.

- NPR

Album Art by Michael Cina
Co-Produced by Andy Thompson and Ben Allen
Album comes with an Origami Heart Insert

MP3 download not included