Abbie Gardner (Red Molly) and Anthony da Costa are both excellent songwriters, and their collaboration on Bad Nights/Better Days only accentuates that point. Together, their voices blend beautifully, driving this collection of incredibly sad songs from shadow to shadow.
Gardner and da Costa's Sad, Sad Songs
If you're looking for a feel-good record, steer clear of Bad Nights/Better Days. Both Abbie Gardner and Anthony da Costa's voices just ooze sadness from the opening notes of "Spent" to the pleading "curse" of "Someday"—with its musical theater-style duet—even through the romantic love song that closes the record.Indeed, even the feel-good songs come across with a tinge of sadness, as if they're harboring the kind of love that happens because of, not inspite of, loneliness and regret.
The Bottom Line
What's good about this collaboration is that it's evenly matched. Da Costa's tendency to lean more toward the folk-pop or -rock end of the spectrum nicely complements Gardner's penchant for more straight-up traditional Americana. Their harmonies are tight and intuitive, and the instrumentation added to their own stringed instruments is almost never invasive or inappropriate (the electric guitar moaning through the opening track doesn't add much, but that's the only instance of instrumental excess).Overall, Bad Nights/Better Days is an honest opening effort for a duo that will hopefully shell out more collaborative efforts as the years go on.
