The first thing you notice about Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn is her disarmingly cute voice. The second thing you'll notice is probably the strong words she uses with her voice. Mirah's seemingly innocent voice belies the maturity found in her work. The Old Days Feeling is a collection of b-sides and rarities that, naturally, doesn't hang all that well together as an album, but certainly shows her range as a songwriter and artist. Mirah is equally adept at a minimalist “voice and guitar” folk song as a shambling rock song or a more introspective, traditional indy rock tune. As a noted voice in lesbianism in music, she doesn't mince words either. The frank sexuality in “Dreamboat” is shocking sitting next to more folky and laidback numbers like “Lone Star” and “Birthday Present”. Most of the songs also clock in under two minutes, which just adds to the urgency of her music. Her approach is very lo-fi as well. Most of the songs sound like something recorded on a Walkman in an outdoor concert somewhere in the middle of a forest. This album is very representative of her work as a whole, but not for casual fans. The slapdash nature of a compilation mars the music here somewhat, but the talent displayed is beyond reproach.

By Steve Marlow
Dec 2, 2008