Jon and Roy

Another Noon is the second disc for guitarist Jon Middleton and percussionist Roy Vizer, capturing a wonderfully unassuming, open-mic, coffee-shop vibe that charms and welcomes us in. Though the duo of just guitar and percussion occasionally leaves the ear yearning for the familiar thrum of a bass, Roy Vizer’s use of the kit, combined with melodic, percussion-like congas, fills in the gap. The percussive element also appears in Middleton’s singing, which rides, rich and warm, above and through the variety of labels that could be given to the songs, some strictly folksy, like "By the Sea,” where a swaying melody is punctuated by a subtle tickety-tap of drumsticks. Others swing with a soft, reggae-like groove ("Moonlight”) or blend into a plinking ukulele melody in "On A Hill.” There is something comforting and familiar (maybe a distant echo to a VW commercial?) in the songs but without losing a sense of the fresh and new.