Ditty Bops

Although there’s something decidedly whimsical about California’s the Ditty Bops, their debut is a spellbinding synthesis of strings, percussion, and folk sensibility. Perhaps it’s the quirky artwork, poetic lyrics, and storybook personalities that endow this band with an uncommon allure. The Ditty Bops are Abby DeWald on acoustic guitar and Amanda Barrett on mandolin and dulcimer, along with a contentedly anonymous ensemble of supporting musicians. The Ditty Bops website supplements their artistic vision and offers a unique introduction to the band’s two main characters and their respective mythologies. Abby and Amanda’s seamless voices and stage personalities have a farm girl-meets-wood nymph presence that adds to the fairytale charm. Lyrically, the songs are playfully poetic and simple in their beauty, yet complex in their ambivalence. Overall, the album ponders the coincidence of splendour and horror in a provocative yet light-hearted manner. The Ditty Bops are two girls putting on a play and the curtains are drawn before a starry night sky where a green and blue planet takes the stage. As Abby and Amanda stand to the sides, one speaks in stars, the other in question marks. The Ditty Bops approach their craft with wonder and illumination. With work this good, they will be around long enough for the rest of us to discover the awe inspired life for ourselves.