I first heard Fences after listening to a collaboration with Macklemore on a song called “Otherside.” After hearing that amazing performance I looked into this project, and I found out that it was the brainchild of Berklee schooled musician, Christopher Mansfield. The group also features guitarist Ben Greenspan and bassist Lyndsey Starr.
Mansfield started putting together the Seattle project together in 2009, and shortly was discovered online by Sara Quin (Of Tegan & Sara Fame) after releasing his first EP, 2009’s The Ultimate Puke. Soon Mansfield was back in the studio working on Fence’s self-titled debut album. This album was released in 2010 and was produced, recorded, and features vocals from Quin. It also featured some great tracks. One of these track is entitled “Same Tattoos” which is a great narrative about growing up without a father. There is also a great track on the album entitled “Your Bones” which sounds to me like a mix of U2 and Coldplay.
I like Fences a lot because of Mansfields’s very subdued and unique style. His delivery is very deliberate and the arrangements are very mellifluous making it a pleasure to listen to.
-B. Harlow
