This sophomore album from the duo The 15th Floor takes its name and artwork from Track #4, a tale told by a man in love with a superhero, “Wondergirl.” The album strives to make the listener feel something with every song, whether it is deep and emotional (Track #13, “Something More”) or light and frivolous (Track #14, “Just To Think About You.”) Derived from the singer-songwriter style of the 70’s, this Americana album could pass as folk, folk-rock, or alternative country, but remains current—like Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz, or Matt Nathanson with a lot more roots showing.
All the tracks feature the unique and intriguing harmony style of Emily Johnson. On Track #5, Johnson takes the lead on “Wild Heart”, delving into the alternative country realm, backed up perfectly by Nancy Damone’s vocals and Doug Bartlett on fiddle and mandolin. Bartlett also magically transforms the folk ballad “Looking For You” with his interweaving fiddle.
“Whatever You Are”, “You’re The Girl”, and “Just To Think About You” keep you smiling and tapping your toes, as does the summer love song, “You Should Know.” “Every songwriter needs a summer song,” says Scott Kriegshauser (also known as “Kriegs”), who wrote all the tracks with a little help lyrically from Johnson on the dichotomous divorce song, “Kind Words.”
“I started writing songs about the same time I starting falling in love, in the 5th grade,” says Kriegs, who continued writing even during Medical School and throughout his ongoing 20+ year career as a Radiologist. His daughter, Emily, now married with twin sons, learned to read music at age 4, is an award winning classical pianist and has trained as a studio engineer. She produced the first album, From the Dining Room, which features eight folk-rock tracks. The new album, As The Building Burned, was recorded, mixed, and mastered by producer Kyle Harris at his PlayR Recording studio in Phoenix, AZ. Kriegs believes Harris should receive a Grammy for his work on this album. Johnson says, “Kyle is a master. We wanted to go more organic this time and that’s what he is best at, especially letting the song shine through. I didn’t really appreciate a couple of the songs until I heard the first mix. Kyle made me love them!”
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