A very long time ago (by internet standards), a fellow by the name of Andrew Choi added this reviewer on Facebook, followed by an exchange of pleasantries about the Columbus music scene. This Columbus turned Brooklyn resident will always plainly have a piece of his heart in Columbus (he visited/performed in Treebar, a hold in the wall better known as Andyman’s Treehouse back in the day). This brings me to the musical project Choi runs, an alter-ego of sorts he dubs St. Lenox.

I’m not really sure where this moniker originates, but the feel and content of the music is odd like the name, but weirdly alluring. Choi’s nasal voice has a way of echoing in your cranial cavern, yet you’re not as annoyed as you feel perhaps you ought to be by this. The musical project St Lenox has made somewhat of a name for itself, recently performing at the rising Chillicothe, OH Paper City Music Festival alongside the happy-go-lucky folk-rock collective Kopecky Family Band and the similarly flavored He’s My Brother, She’s My Sister.

It only takes a half minute or so of jamming “I Still Dream of the 90’s” to realize that Choi writes about whatever he darn well pleases – influenced by the probings of pretty much nobody. “Just Friends” with its whimsical inclusion of xylophone, is ironically perhaps the most straightforward and catchy of the four songs on this “maxi-single”. “To Be Young Again” smacks you upside the head with nostalgia, while “That Old Time Religion” paraphrases the old-time tune of the same name, the 90s hit “You Gotta Be” by Des’ree and just enough spin from Choi himself to keep things unique and interesting.

St Lenox is a bit of an enigma, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=760858875 size=medium bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5]

Score: 3.5/5

St Lenox is on Facebook, and you can acquire the Maxi-Single on bandcamp