Hand-Picked Berries and Sun-Dried Tomatoes 1

The following is a collection of selected critiques of the work of Zoltan Goliath and Otis Trench from a variety of media outlets. The views expressed therein are entirely unsolicited, uncompensated and unexpurgated, representing the opinions of the individual reviewers. “Neo-Classic Burlesque? Retro-Vaudeville? They should bill themselves as The New Originals. Their lyrics are gospel to a cult demographic.” M. C., The Chestnut Mare “I’ve always been attracted to weird. Goliath and Trench oblige. They probe the anatomy of darkness and come away with sticky fingers. I can relate to that.” Caspar Melchior, Detective Quarterly “…unconventional, artistic, and hedonistic, as if pandering to a beatnik’s vision of bohemian cool.” Bertram Roundhouse Brown, Estimates and Approximations “The mythology surrounding their fabled collaboration appeared so ponderous, I didn’t think I could possibly get a handle on it. But when I braced myself and took hold, it threw my balance and proved too ethereal to hold onto. It stabbed me right through the heart.” Gary Dubrovich, En Garde “The composers interweave prurient threads through mundane cloth so cleverly, they’ll have you looking for four-letter-words in your alphabet soup.” Muriel Farrier, The Methodist Observer “Listening to these words made me feel a bit guilty, like I was staring out my window when my neighbor’s shades had need of being drawn, but I kept looking anyway, with my binoculars.” Marlena Parlance Tweed, Romance International “They weave tales singular and spooky, in which the twisted irony of Guy De Maupassant meets the droll bawdiness of Honoré de Balzac.” Frank Motowsky, Journal of Academic Discourse “The authors’ ‘…trail of bread crumbs through the woods is known to lead to damaged goods, bad coffee and a wicked morning after.’ What more could I say?” Jeri Flaxwood, Eclectic Cuisine Magazine “Imagine Matthew Arnold strolling Dover Beach barefoot and stepping on broken glass. You can feel the pain. It is artfully sad.” Bogdan Zalesto, Poetry Fortnight “While these songs are certain to appeal to speakers of English, they comprise such a melodic combination of sounds that the aural impact alone would be deemed beautiful to speakers of any language.” Bud Jordan, Phonics Review “…as reverent as a missal of prayers found in the liturgy of some ancient and highly personal religion; like the Book of Hours, with rhythm.” Sister Rose Kenyan, Benedictine Vespers “Their mead hall rings of epic folk yarns that could bring tears to Odin’s eyes and have the God of Thunder singing, If I Had a Hammer.” Sven Bourgensen, Scandinavian Review “These ditties are off to the dance hall and down to the hardwood.” Wag Butler, The Western Swing Voter “This collection of ‘ersatz folk songs, counterfeit ballads and pseudo blues’ is only to be consumed on an empty bladder. You’ll piss yourself laughing otherwise.” Ellen Smith, Strolling Tone Magazine “…delightfully animated story line with well-established characterizations. I eagerly await their next theatrical production.” Ramona Pleasance, Play Date “It brought to mind the sound of scrimshaw being etched on whalebone with a parrot squawking approval.” Jared Coffin, The Nantucket Reader “These songs evoke visions of romance washed clean by tears and presented in poignant clarity; smooth and vulnerable, soft and pink.” Sherry Baton, The Votive Voice of Vermont