Idiot Reviews April 07
John Starling and Carolina Star - Slidin' HomeCarolina Star are John Starling - lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Mike Auldridge - resophonic guitar and Tim Gray - standup bass. These guys had played together before in a band called Seldom Scene. There are many guests pickin' and singing including Emmy Lou Harris, Jon Randall and others. This is a very nice and CD with warm and simple selections of acoustic harmony. If you like bluegrass pickin' this is an excellent buy. "They'll never take her love from me" (Leon Payne) is a real beauty, more sweet guitar by Randall and fiddle by Richie Simpkins. Starling is real animated in his singing approach. On "Those Two Blue Eyes" (Nipper), there is some great pickin' and ethereal playin' on a Weissenborn guitar by Auldridge. This is a tune you just get into and flow with because of the pickin'. The best song on the CD is "Willin"" by Lowell George. Starling really nails it in a real warm, slow delivery. Nice Piano, more incredible lap steel by Auldridge, unreal tone, just takes your head away. If you like old time country, bluegrass pickin' that is up to date, John Starling and Carolina Star is for you. 5 stars
Deadsea - DesiderataDeadsea originates from Columbus, Ohio, featuring the talents of composer/guitarist/vocalist/keyboardist Adam Smith, bassist/vocalist Alex Conley and percussionist Jamie Hafler. The music they create is an extremely unique blend of insane, mind - blowing progressive rock and spacey, droning doom metal. As with any band that draws influence from progressive rock you can expect some expert musicianship from each member. While the guitarist displays some amazing leads he is often matched with rhythm and harmony by the bassist and drummer while the time signatures are constantly changing. To say this band is epic would be quite an understatement, with only one song on the album under ten minutes and many mood variations in each song. You can expect some fast whacko - technical bits, while some are slow, melodious and calming, and some are just straight up rocking riffs. Every now and then the music just melts down into pure chaotic electronic noise, very interesting to say the least. If you enjoy doom or black metal, progressive rock, or taking fifteen hits of LSD before jumping out of an airplane, then this band is for you. Their album is available through their myspace profile - www.myspace.com/deadsea. 4 stars
Album review for Dearborn – Always in DisguiseChicago’s Dearborn seems to be on quite the rise for a band experiencing the release of it’s first album. One of, if not the hottest local band on the Chicago scene right now, Dearborn seems poised to make a run on modern rock radio. They’ve recently had their music featured on NBC’s hit show “Kidnapped” and held their album release party at the infamous Metro in Chicago, a place where a little band called The Smashing Pumpkins got it’s first gig in the late 1980’s. Led by the mainstream-ready, but innovative lead guitar work of Mike “Pops” Poupko and the wailing, occasionally harmonized vocals of Pino Farina, this band brings a pretty solid four-piece attack on their debut. On tracks like “Already Down,” Poupko does his best to emulate the mastery of Eddie Van Halen and does so quite well, while “Always in Disguise” calls to mind the work of mid-career (but still good) Incubus. 4 stars.
Album Review for Dr. Dog – We All BelongQuickly gathering critical acclaim and widened exposure (see their appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien), Dr. Dog is rising in the realm of Indie heroism with the speed of an Arcade Fire or a Grizzly Bear. Rolling Stone has described their sound as “Retro psych-rock” and that is indeed a fantastic place to start. Here on their second full length album, Dr. Dog has abandoned recording into an old fashioned 8-track and upgraded to a 24-track, which enabled them to explore a whole new realm in the recording process. The result is a devastatingly solid album (albeit a 38 minute one) full of richly layered and textured everything from three-part vocal harmonies to keys to reverb’d out guitars and it is pretty amazing. Critics may say these guys draw kind of heavily on The Beatles but since when has that been a bad thing? Think Sgt. Peppers sitting on the front porch of a Mississippi mushroom farm and that mental image may be a fitting metaphor. Catch them at the Grey Eagle in Asheville May 8th. 5 stars all the way.
Album Review for Follow the Train – “A Breath of Sigh”Fresh off an opening slot for My Morning Jacket, and with a new, impressively bearded lineup not actually featured on this album (Only lead singer Dennis remains from the previous incarnation of Follow the Train), the band has delivered a solidly smooth and impressive album on A Breath of Sigh. Calling on Kentucky cronies My Morning Jacket for some influence in the sound, I hear everyone from Jeff Buckley to Leonard Cohen in the music, while the band still manages to create a sound of their own. Having the sense of humor and musical prowess to pull off a flawless cover of “She’s Like the Wind” at a live show only add to the coolness. On “Flower,” the beautiful “I’m Not Sorry” and the album as a whole, Follow the Train create an almost-melancholy piece of shoegazy rock, fitting for fans of MMJ, Band of Horses and the like. Hopefully we’ll get these boys back in Boone real soon. I give it four stars. Solidly.
Album review for Gringo Star – Self-titled EPIt seems like there have been a few famous bands to come out of Athens, Georgia over the past few decades. I could list them, but this would start looking more like Peter Travers’ little black book than an album review, so I’ll mosey onward. Lead by singer Nick Furguiele, this four-piece calls to mind everyone from Tom Petty to Bon Jovi (and I promise I don’t mean the Bon Jovi part as an insult). Through the six songs on this EP, the band sounds as though they’ve simultaneously emerged from the mid 1970’s and early 1990’s. The standout track on the album, “Transmission” sounds as though it is ready for radio. These boys just came off of a tour with The Slip, and you just missed their March 25th stop at Black Cat in Boone. I give this EP a solid four stars, and I’m looking forward to seeing what these boys bring to the table in the future. Check them out on Myspace at www.myspace.com/thegringostars. 4 stars
Album review for JJ Grey & Mofro – Country GhettoFlorida southern rock/swamp blues purveyors Mofro, led by songwriter and multi-instrumentalist JJ Grey are back with a force on their third studio album. Country Ghetto in itself is a prized amalgamation of sound, a genre blurring backdrop to a form of front porch blues that calls to mind every legend in the Delta blues book. In parts, you may be inclined to think of a Muddy Waters or even a Bill Withers backed by G. Love and Special Sauce. JJ Grey is a magnificent talent as a musician and a songwriter, bringing to the table the ghosts of everyone from Robert Johnson to Otis Redding, even delving into the rich history of Black Americana roots music of the late 1800’s/early 1900’s. Throw in the slide guitars, the harmonicas and the keys and you’ve got one of the most innovative records I’ve heard in awhile. This album would make everyone from Lynyrd Skynyrd to Ben Harper proud. 4.5 stars.
Album Review for Naked Gods – It Ain’t Just Cold OutsideBoone heroes Naked Gods shine here on their long-awaited six-song debut EP. Having been a regular attendee and bartender of Naked Gods shows for the past year or so, I’d been waiting quite a while for the debut day to get here. I’ll admit, I was a little worried that the album wouldn’t be as strong as their growingly amazing live sets, but from start to finish It Ain’t Just Cold Outside is incredible. Lead singer Seth Sullivan’s wail is reminiscent of a young, Southern Tom Waits with a flowing drawl that bounces perfectly over the band’s back-porch jangle. “It’s just a bunch of guys that like to drink lots of beer and getting together and playing music… I hope that doesn’t show through too much,” says guitarist Brian Knox. Sure, you can hear a little beer drinking in the music, but how is that a bad thing? Here on their debut, the boys bring to mind the work of The Band, The Beatles, slowed-down Skynyrd, Goose Creek Symphony and the various incarnations of Neil Young just to name a few, and I honestly can’t stop listening to it. Though all the tracks, from “Scorpion Arms” to “Tryin’ To Lose” these guys have got the old time bar sing along bounce down to a very fine art and any of the six tracks would make any of the artists listed above proud. Along with Seth and Brian, fellow band members Chris Hutelmyer, Christian Smith and Derek Wildcat have been spending a lot of time playing together lately, and it shines through here in force. I’ll admit that I’m a sucker for a steel guitar every now and again, but through everything on the album, and with the budding success of bands like Dr. Dog and the like, I don’t see how these boys couldn’t be right along side them. Although crowd-favorite “Beautiful Daughter” lacked the drunken sing-along with 100 Boonies, raised tallboys in hand, it along with “My Savior Lives” lead as the best tracks off what is an entirely solid album. I know I’ve got two other five-star albums in here, but it’s been a good month. And I’ve honestly not heard anything better than this in a long time. Strong work boys. They’re not on Myspace yet, but you can get them at NKDGODS@Yahoo.com. Best five bucks I’ve ever spent. 5 big stars.
Album Review for The Arcade Fire – Neon BibleThe sophomore effort from Montreal’s magnificent eight-or-nine piece outfit has definitely been one of 2007’s most anticipated records. The band did not disappoint. To put it in a nutshell, Neon Bible is a 49-minute orchestral orgasm which happens to be separated into eleven songs. After the release of 2004’s instant-classic Funeral, many wondered whether the band could match the intensity, necessity and beauty packed so artfully into its debut. New ground is most definitely explored on the album, as tracks such as “Keep the Car Running” have almost a new-wave beat behind it all. “Ocean of Noise” caused me to briefly recall the career of Chris Isaak, while “My Body Is A Cage” and “Black Mirror” hearken back to the brilliant work on Funeral. Neon Bible has a sense of epic urgency to it matched by very few musicians around today. As the band continues its jaw-dropping musical journey, I can’t help but drool at the fact that they’ve only given us two full albums thus far, and we could very well be in store for so much more. Is March too early to call “Album of the Year?” As a friend of mine says, “All the good bands are from Canada.” I’d say catch them at Thomas Wolfe in Asheville May 2nd, but it went ahead and sold out six weeks in advance.
5 giant, shining French-Canadian stars.
Album Review – Lonely China Day – SorrowComing off their first ever U.S. tour (which consisted of something along the lines of New York, Boston, Boone) Chinese space rockers Lonely China Day left quite the impression on those who were fortunate enough to see them while they were here. Sort of a Massive Attack meets Rush, when Rush was good. The lyrics, obviously, are in Chinese, but the album comes with English subtitles which make for some very interesting and poetic translations. The smooth and intricate flow of the album, often called “shoegazer” by similar artists and obscure music genre aficionados, roams everywhere from slow-building ambiance on “Red Blossom of Plum & Me” and “Sorrow” to the soundtrack-to-a-Tarantino-film retro vibe of “Bejing Realize” which is irresistibly catchy in it’s own right. Unfortunately, I’m not sure where you could pick up a copy of this album other than ordering it from China, but it very well could be worth it. Check out www.LonelyChinaDay.com for more details. I give it 4 stars.
Album review of Peter, Bjorn & John – Writer’s BlockCatchiest thing to come out of Sweden since The Hives’ “Hate To Say I Told You So” about half a decade back. Peter, Bjorn & John are covering little, if any brave new ground on this record, but the results are irresistible regardless. The lead single (and subsequent amazing puppet-based music video) features guest vocals from former Concretes front-woman Victoria Bergsman, as well as a hearty chorus of whistling, putting even The Scorpions’ “Winds of Change” to shame in the category of best European Musical Whistling. The album as a whole is a bit quirky, a refreshing mix recalling everyone from The Shins to The Velvet Underground. Perhaps The Postal Service fronted simultaneously by Brian Eno and Blur’s Damon Albarn. All in all, this album is a lo-fi masterpiece. From the retro bounce of “Amsterdam” to the haunting “The Chills,” this may already be one of the best albums of the year. 4.5 stars.
