[Sunday Supplements this week are brought to you by Campfires & Battlefields, to whom I owe an enormous apology due to the fact that I have been sitting on this post for ages, interrupted first by Christmas, then disorganisation, then ineptitude... you get the picture.]

Olenka & the Autumn Lovers are pretty special if you ask me. They’re all the rage in London, Ontario. Olenka Krakus is the mastermind, the singer, the composer, the lyricist, the guitarist, the accordionist (sometimes), the glockenspielist. She came to Canada from Poland, and her songs are a compelling blend of Eastern European and North American influences. She sings with smoky tension, mostly in English, but sometimes in the Polish or French of her youth. She tells poignant stories of handsome soldier boys, fleets of loud frightening machines made of scrap iron, and sweet-faced children in the Warsaw breadlines. I wish I had heard her long ago.

Olenka also appears to have a wide circle of talented friends. The Autumn Lovers are a revolving cast of characters, but they all can flat-out play. Apart from Olenka’s guitar there’s violin, viola, cello, mandolin, lap steel, accordion, clarinet, saxophone, upright bass, percussion instruments of all kinds, glockenspiel, triangle, banjo, bottles knocked against wood, snapping fingers, and truly moving harmony vocals. They make a clatter that would do Tom Waits proud, providing an expansive counterpoint for Olenka’s intimate tales.

So far Olenka & The Autumn Lovers have released one self-titled full-length record and two EPs, all of which were released in 2008. Of the tracks here, Soldier’s Waltz and When We Were Children are taken from the full-length while Papillon comes from the Papillonette EP, which has a lovely lonesome country vibe. All three records are available for purchase at CD Baby, and the full-length is available for digitial download at Zunior.com. You really owe it to yourself to get this. Apparently recording has begun for the sophomore full-length as well, and a 2010 release is envisioned, which is immensely good news. These songs really speak for themselves. Enjoy.

Olenka & The Autumn Lovers – Soldier’s Waltz

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Olenka & The Autumn Lovers – When We Were Children

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Olenka & The Autumn Lovers – Papillon

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