Album Reviews
Man, I do this once every couple months. I spend quality time with a phenomenal album and then never even mentioned it to you. We first saw The Black Angels at South By Southwest 2007 while randomly hanging out with Joe Simpson in the crowd. It was really surreal seeing a trippy psychedelic band next to Joe Simpson. I think Drinking Buddy’s man-crush on Mr. Simpson may only be trumped by Woody’s infatuation with Will Sheff of Okkervil River.
I reviewed The Black Angels’ debut album, Passover, last year and mentioned that this is what Grace Slick might sound like if she had a set of testicles. I’m not sure if lead singer Alex Maas would like that description, but I swear I hear a bit of “White Rabbit” in every song. Directions To See A Ghost may seem like a conservative follow up to The Black Angels’ debut, but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it, right? The sound is still laden with reverb and fuzz and at first it didn’t smack me in the face like Passover. Passover has knockout tracks like “First Vietnam War” and “Bloodhounds On My Trail” but Directions To See A Ghost is a more complete package from beginning to end.
I never thought for a second that this was a sophomore slump, but I initially thought it was a parallel move for the band. The more I listen, however, the more I enjoy the subtle intensity in Directions To See A Ghost. It is now several leaps ahead of The Black Angels’ debut in my mind and I’m sure it’ll be on lots of ‘Best of 2008′ lists at the end of the year.
If you’re like Woody and took copious amounts of drugs in your college days (and you were alive in the 60’s), then it’ll take no time to fall in love with this album. If you notice them in your town, make your way through the hazy fog of smoke and get a glimpse of the band in person.
The Black Angels - You On The Run
The Black Angels - Mission District
From Passover:
Wild Sweet Orange is the best band I’ve heard that’s named after tea. I first heard of the Birmingham, AL outfit last year when they released The Whale EP and I’ve been anxiously awaiting We Have Cause To Be Uneasy after hearing the riveting track, “Ten Dead Dogs.” It’s been worth the wait.
Some of the music featured on HearYa is a bit on the obscure side. Another blogger once labeled us “hard core indie.” I’m not sure that’s an appropriate description, since we tend to lean toward music with twang, but I digress. Like recently reviewed band, Everest, Wild Sweet Orange don’t require much time to grow on you.
Their music is very accessible and We Have Cause To Be Uneasy isn’t just a one trick pony. “Ten Dead Dogs” is followed up by slow, contemplative songs like “Seeing is Believing” and “Sour Milk” and then my urge for twang is satisfied when the banjo sneaks in on “An Atlas to Follow.” It’s a well produced album with a big grown up sound for a band of newcomers.
Wild Sweet Orange - Ten Dead Dogs
Wild Sweet Orange on Letterman
Grayson Capps was conceived in the backseat of a Pontiac and born to the son of a preacher in Alabama. In his bio, he says “I write songs which have the voice of dead prophets masquerading as town drunks screaming ‘look at us we’re pretty, too!’” Grayson Capps is part country singer, part bluesman, part preacher, part vagabond and part poet.
The album starts off with “Going Back To The Country” and right away I knew I was in for a treat. It’s a song about being far away from home performing relentlessly, surrounded by booze and whores, with the “devil always at your door, knockin’ at you.” Capps longs to get back to Alabama where life’s simple pleasures, “eating cornbread and raising hell,” await him with a warm embrace. A closer look at his bio, however, reveals that he now resides in New Orleans. It looks like going home might just mean more whores and booze.
From there, Rott ‘N’ Roll progresses through thirteen songs that alternate between slow burning ballads like “The Waltz” and back-porch blues jams like “Big Black Buzzard.” If you were a fan of his previous effort, Songbones, then you’ll appreciate the slide guitar and laid back acoustic tracks. But on Rott ‘N’ Roll it’s the rocking electric blues numbers, backed by a full band, that will get your foot stomping.
You can hear more tracks on his MySpace page. I’ve never met him, but Grayson Capps just seems like a stranger that you’d like to swap stories with at a bar. I have a feeling he can spin a yarn.
Grayson Capps - Going Back To The Country
From his previous album, Songbones:
I listened to the first track on Cabin Ghosts by Appleton Wisconsin’s own Cory Chisel and The Wandering Sons and immediately knew it was my cup of tea. I heard the first verse on “Lovers and Friends” and was instantly reminded of Screamin’ Cheetah Wheelies. Corey’s voice has a similar bluesy, soulful sound like Mike Ferris.
Cory Chisel’s six song EP is a short appetizer and I’m looking forward to a full-length album. Cabin Ghosts has some song gems, tinged with gospel, blues, and lyrical honesty. If you’re a fan of Americana, Cory Chisel is a name to keep on your radar. You won’t find a weak spot on this EP.
Stalk That Myth by Bowery Boy Blue ended up in our inbox about two months ago. I’ve been itching for the release date to post this review because it took no more than one listen to enjoy it. It took a few more to really start finding the nooks and crannies in the music.
The band is fronted by Zeb Gould and evolved from his solo work. Gould and crew deliver a 32 minute set of melancholic Americana that is at parts, beautiful (Eye For Love) and at others heartbreaking (Ghost Of The Blues). The production work is well thought out and they have a knack for finding the perfect accompaniment for Gould’s vocals and lyrics - Nothing too overpowering or complex to take away from the end game.
Strings, banjo picking, steel are all present and used perfectly on Stalk That Myth. The lead track, however, brings some crunching chords that will have everyone comparing them to Magnolia Electric Co. and Crazy Horse.
The Brooklyn outfit is releasing their debut July 29th on Space Photo Records.
Bowery Boy Blue - Come Closer, Sisters
As Drinking Buddy mentioned during his review of Langhorne Slim’s show at Schubas, the Portland outfit The Builders and The Butchers opened up the night. And as DB surmised, this is a band that is right in my wheelhouse. Unfortunately for me, I was watching the Cubs come back against the Dodgers and, while the Cubs won, I missed out on seeing an excellent band.
My immediate reaction when listening to the album is that The Builders and The Butchers are an easier-going version of O’Death. The songs are a little dark and they have that deep woods “moonshine” sound. The Builders and The Butchers’ vocals are a little more accessible than O’Death’s Greg Jamie and the jams are a little less intense.
With titles like “Red Hands,” “Black Dresses,” “The Gallows” and “Bottom Of The Lake,” its easy to see a pattern here. “Bottom Of The Lake” is told from the perspective of a man at, you guessed it, the bottom of the lake. The lyrics are chilling.
The album has a steady tension to it. There are certain discs to listen to on lazy Sundays with the family, like Blind Pilot. Head Home from O’Death isn’t one and neither is The Builders and The Butchers’ fine effort. I found myself on edge listening to most of the songs.
Well, I guess its another lesson learned. There are 162 Cubs games in a year. No need to pass up quality acts unless its September.
MySpace | Bladen County Records
The Builders and The Butchers - Bottom of the Lake
From their previous album Split 12″:
Black Diamond Heavies - A Touch Of Someone Else’s Class
0 Comments Published by Woody July 16th, 2008.
If you are a musician, dig playing blues and have the talent to record, then I suggest you look up Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys and ask him nicely to produce your next album. Black Diamond Heavies’ first album Every Damn Time was an enjoyable listen, but A Touch of Someone Else’s Class is a giant step forward. While the recipe of John Wesley Myers and Van Campbell remains the same, Auerbach has introduced a few new elements to the mix that really take the Tennessee twosome forward.
The dynamic of the band is very similar to the Keys. Both Auerbach and Myers are wholly dependent on their respective drummers to do more than simply keep a beat. They are responsible for becoming the driving force of the band to allow their frontmen a tremendous amount of freedom. Patrick Carney is my favorite drummer around today, but Van Campbell is definitely in the same league. I have listened to this album countless times and am truly blown away by his playing.
As for Myers, he still delivers his vocals ala Tom Waits. In fact Ralph Carney, a horn player for Waits and Patrick Carney’s uncle is introduced on one track, “Bidin’ My Time” that oozes soul. Much like “All To Hell” from the first album, it gives off an Otis Redding vibe that makes me want to slow dance with my lady.
Myers is equally adept when the boys turn it up a notch as well. “Nutbush City Limit,” “Make Some Time” and my favorite, “Smooth It Out” are all dirty, scuzzy blues rockers. Myers works the organ into a lather and delivers the vocals like he’s part demon.
Much like BBQ joints, there are some people that like their ribs in a quaint, well-lit atmosphere with shiny sliverware. And then there are those of us who like their ribs slapped on some white bread in a joint where you can barely see the silverware. Black Diamond Heavies are that hole-in-wall BBQ place.
If you don’t like Blind Pilot’s 3 Rounds and a Sound, then you don’t have a soul. I first heard “Go On, Say It” on XM Radio on Friday afternoon and completely forgot about the song and the band. Saturday rolled around and, after heading to Trader Joe’s for tamales and two buck chuck, I came home and saw Blind Pilot on iTunes offering up the 11 tracks on 3 Rounds and a Sound for under $5.99. I sampled two tunes and immediately purchased.
If you can find a better album for a Sunday afternoon, please let me know. Portland, Oregon’s Blind Pilot sound like a potpourri of Wilco, Iron and Wine, and The Shins. “Oviedo” starts the record off with gentle guitar strums, a ukulele, horns, and a dash of banjo. At least I think I heard a ukulele. “One Red Thread” and “Go On, Say It” are two standout tracks that pick up the tempo halfway through the album, serving as the peak in a nice little bell curve. “The Bitter End” has a hint of Modest Mouse’s “Blame It On the Tetons” in it’s chorus and then the title track winds things down, taunting you to hit repeat. I’ve been repeating all day today.
3 Rounds and a Sound isn’t one of those albums that you need to concentrate on. Just turn off the TV, sit down on your couch with a magazine and play it in the background. It’ll breeze by before you know it and I promise you’ll keep it playing. If you like “Oviedo” below, then you’ll love what’s in store for your $6.00.
Blind Pilot is available on iTunes as a pre-release, so I’d pick it up now just in case they bump the price later. Click here to buy.
Black Mountain’s sophomore album, In the Future, is one of a few that I’ve been listening to lately. I first caught them with Woody at Schubas after seeing Beck earlier the same night, and when I think back, I only remember Black Mountain’s performance. I’m pretty sure it was also the first Woody-Oz man date.
Beck played at a bigger venue and did his normal schtick, complete with band members banging forks on glassware and playing air guitar banjo. Vancouver BC’s Black Mountain, on the other hand, took the stage at Schubas with fierce intensity that was somewhat frightening. Lead singer, Stephen McBean, plays nearly every song with his eyes closed and often with his back to the crowd as if he’s in another world altogether.
The band writes amazingly good psychedelic rock songs that either punch you in the face or get you in a slow groove. They’ve opened for Coldplay and recorded a song for the Spiderman 3 soundtrack. While the mp3 and video below will give you a taste of Black Mountain, I’d venture out to see them in person. It’ll give you a whole new appreciation for the band.
Website | MySpace | Jagjaguwar
Black Mountain - Tyrants
Black Mountain - Angels
Lying around in my disgusting college apartment watching blaxploitation movies in a haze. Man, those were the days. We would watch Fred Williamson, Richard Roundtree and others lay waste to all sorts of dudes. Snappy wardrobes, great dialogue and some major league ass-kickings. In addition to the aforementioned qualities, these movies also introduced me to some great music, including Curtis Mayfield, Issac Hayes and James Brown. The British foursome, The Heavy, capture that early ’70s spirit like few others have.
“That Kind of Man” brings a heavy Curtis Mayfield sound, mixing horn samples into a furious beat that will undoubtedly have you subconsiously doing 90 down the interstate. Lead singer, Kevin Swaby, enhances the sound with his Mayfield-inspired falsetto delivery. I half-wanted to pop out of my car and lay a beating on someone, but upon further consideration, I realized that I’m a skinny, white, suburban dad of three that can’t grow a moustache and looks like shit in leather, unlike like Mr. Williamson.
“Girl” is fantastic in its simplicity. It’s half sexy, half hysterical as Swaby delivers an invitation to an unnamed love interest over a simple drum bass beat, inviting her in for a spot of tea…or weed. Lord only knows what happens to that young lady if and when Swaby gets her into his flat. I’m guessing they didn’t play a game of Parcheesi.
“That Kind Of Man” and “Colleen” are by far the two strongest tracks on the disc. There are a couple of slower tracks like “Doing Fine” that are solid, but Great Vengeance and Furious Fire is best when The Heavy release the hand brake and drop your ass with the big drum beats and powerful vocals.
The Heavy - Colleen
The Heavy - Colleen (Live at WFUV)
The Heavy - That Kind of Man (Live at WFUV)
The Heavy “That Kind of Man” Live Video
