“Hello operator can you talk to me again // It looks like the world has lost its mind.” Akron, Ohio’s power pop duo Librarians With Hickeys offer a comforting counterpoint on their third full-length, How To Make Friends By Telephone. Singer-songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Mike Crooker and Ray Carmen are back with twelve original guitar-driven songs that sound warm, charming and timeless, with jangly hooks, pleasant harmonies and soulful lyrics about today’s questions on love, loss, and connection. From Hello Operator (the opening track is based on a true story by Ray calling the operator every day when he was four years old, just because he liked talking to her) to closing track Everything Will Be All Right (an encouragement to put your phone down at night, because it shuts out the lies), but also in the cover art and music videos, this album bridges the gap between vintage imagery and the modern world. Melodies that ring true across eras, expertly done.
How To Make Friends By Telephone, produced & engineered by Mike Crooker & Ray Carmen, is out now digitally and on CD trough Big Stir Records.