Sean Walsh & The National Reserve

(june 28th, 2006 @ the Laila Lounge)
A mixed salad of sounds that could have been singles from a Calexico B side or maybe a long lost Iron and Wine bootleg, Sean has forged a place in his writing that allows people to get lost in his tunes. This is a good place to be and when he delivered the songs with his heart in the right spot, emotional movement surfaced very clearly in the crowd. Worth another look for sure.
- jezebelmusic.com

The title is accurate. This is American music. Not entirely country, but this folksy singer/songwriter has a decided melancholy in his voice that goes well with the pedal steel guitar accompanying him and the downward-sloped progressions of his choruses.

For what's a seemingly homemade affair, Walsh has conjured up a rather expansive backing band. Acoustic and electric guitars, upright bass, French horn, piano, wurlitzer, the pedal steel, and several different types of percussion played by a variety of players help to flesh out arrangements and make song like "Life is OK" seem full and complete while Walsh's folk traditionalist, sullen, oberst-esque delivery reassures at the same time it questions.

Involving none of the politics the title might suggest, American Music is instead a deeply personal and rich release, showing marked potential from a capable and self assured young performer.

-JJ koczan - Aquarian Weekly

At 20 singer songwriter SeanWalsh is following in the footsteps of writers like Jeff Tweedy, Jay Farrar and Ryan Adams. Like them he has been able to write quality country influenced music at a very young age. Walshs voice is more along the lines of Ryan Adams then that of other similar artists. The songs are well put together and have all the right elements. From the steel guitars on Float to the soothing harmonica on Change this record follows suit with what you would expect from an atl-country release. The quality of this recording is superb and the lyrics are very well structured. Each song flows nicely and each one ties the next in making it a complete album. If there is any critism I would make it would be that this record reminds me of Ryan Adams, which is not a bad thing at all. Sean Walsh is a breath of fresh air for me. I am a huge fan of this style of music and few have been able to pull off the style and feel properly. Walsh has done that and then some, I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys alt-country or just fans of good music. - buzzgrinder.com