How would you expect a band to sound that formed in Guatemala and then evolved in Boston, New York, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Switzerland, and Barcelona? It's a sound as diverse as the players themselves...

Melou is an eclectic group of international musicians from completely different backgrounds. Led by the incredibly soulful and powerful voice of Boston native Annie Buechl, the sound is a true mix of blues, jazz, folk, reggae, bossanova, swing, and soul. Annie herself is inspired by singers from Ella Fitzgerald and Etta James to Janis Joplin and Tracy Chapman, while the other members each bring their own sound into the mix...

The core of the band was founded over the winter of '04/'05 in (of all places) Antigua, Guatemala. While Annie was singing in a music cafe in the artistic Central-American city, she met guitarist and songwriter Maarten Reijnierse who was working in a hospital after leaving his home of the Netherlands. After four months of nightly gigging in Central America they spent time in Boston and New York City writing loads of original music and playing with a variety of amazing musicians. The vibes were right and the sounds were inspiring... But their trek around the world had only begun...

Annie then decided to fly with her new band to Utrecht, Holland, where Maarten had been living before he moved to Guatemala--of course, no one could pronounce Maarten's name at the time. But Melou spent over a year there writing new material, playing shows in Amsterdam and all corners of Holland, and building a following around the Netherlands . In 2006 their bass player Max Comaskey joined them in time for a tour of Europe--which took them to Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Spain, where they finally recorded their debut album "Communication" in Barcelona with producer Dave Bianchi during the summer and fall of 2006.

The band enjoyed Barcelona immensely. The creative energy in the city led to numerous spontaneous recordings with over a dozen artists currently residing in Barcelona. Percussion and traditional flute from Argentinian wonders Negritos, saxophone genius Coen Kaldeway of Amsterdam, sessions with accordion player and songwriter Amanda Jayne Wright, recordings with members of Barcelona favorites Dumbala Canalla, and a slew of incredible players bringing their double basses, clarinets, trumpets, cellos, violins, and mandolins. The result was a truly original sound...

This is why their debut album is so diverse and unique. As Annie puts it, "We keep it interesting by playing different genres of music, it won’t EVER get boring!" From the opening swing number 'Ain't No One Slowin' You Down,' the Stan Getz-inspired bossanova track 'I Grow My Flowers For You,' the chill reggae sound of 'Sweet Love,' old school blues vibe of 'Paint Me a Picture,' the Pink Floyd-inspired climax of 'Blue,' and even an Arabic string-laden epic, the 'Sunshine Suite,' Melou fuses together sounds from every corner of the globe.

What better title for such a project than 'Communication'. With language and cultural barriers constantly presenting challenges, music manages to be the single most important form of connection--and of communication...