"Magical...near-perfect...an early contender for one of the best albums of 2004." The Washington Post

Talented Washington, D.C. acoustic guitarist and singer-songwriter Luke Brindley has drawn comparisons to masters like Bruce Cockburn and David Wilcox. His last album, How Faint the Whisper, received praise and accolades from Performing Songwriter (Top 12 DIY) and was named to Acoustic Guitar's "Hit List." But being the forward-looking artist he is, Brindley's left the safety of the past behind, enlisting his brother and sometimes songwriting partner Daniel on keys and backing vocals, forming the Brindley Brothers and forging ahead with a fresh, hook-infested rock'n'roll sound. Saturated with a striking pop sensibility, the Brothers' debut, Playing With The Light, is a record that proudly displays the influence of Summerteeth-era Wilco, the subtly complex chord voicings of Paul Westerberg's Replacements material and the mid-'90s alt-folk-rock of bands like The Gin Blossoms, Soul Asylum and Counting Crows. It's a well-paced affair full of aggressive, energetic rockers ("Supernova," and the title track), catchy, well-crafted mid-tempo tunes ("Roman Candle," "Crazy One") and a quiet, pensive folk song that erupts midway through, builds to a climax and then fades, leaving only a dreamy loop of beautifully droning backwards guitar (the album-closing, "Breakdown").

On Playing With The Light, the Brindleys wanted to compile all of the best songs they'd written over the last two years, and perform and produce them in a way that felt right for each one. "I wanted variety," says Luke, "and to keep it interesting on all levels." Thematically, as the title suggests, the Brothers explore the control some higher power has over our relationships, the uncertainty of life, standing up for what you believe in the face of opposition, and the search for hope and meaning. "While the theme is big, I tended to look primarily at how it worked within the context of my family and how I experienced recent events like 9/11, the war and the D.C. sniper killings. Light, explosions, fire and burning are all recurring images in the songs and to me they represent change." Lyrics like, "Would anyone here be surprised / If the end of the world went down tonight / Not these days..." capture the uncertainty we've been thrust into during these strange and turbulent times.

In the studio—though they played most of the instruments themselves—the Brindleys enlisted the help of a cast of local musicians, including Jared Bartlett, whose role as co-producer and engineer proved invaluable. The driving shuffle of "Harder, Easier, Better" is graced by the presence of Australian guitarist Jeff Lang and veteran Jon Carroll (Mary Chapin Carpenter). "I wanted this record to showcase more variety in instrumentation and style," says Luke. And the Brindley Brothers certainly succeed on Playing With The Light, yet another sign of life from Paste Records.