Woodsist

Though it’s hard to imagine, Alex Bleeker & The Freaks’ dreamy How Far Away sounds even more musically laid back and relaxed then the airy jams of Bleeker’s other band, Real Estate. The 11-song album is stacked with a series of mellow, warbling country-fried numbers and sunny, sweet pop rock tunes. When Bleeker gets it right, his songs are absolutely lovely – the gentle, shuffling “Home I Love” and the uptempo “Who Are You Seeing?” are a musical spring afternoon, chirping birds and all. At times, that haze bogs down the album’s flow – “Time Cloud” is exactly that, three minutes spent in a cloud without any momentum. How Far Away is not bad by any stretch, but it’s so feather-light that it just floats away.