Author: Captain Capm (Page 7 of 118)

RJ Cowdery: One More Door

December 5, 2008 /

Decent folk pop artist straddling the gaps between Americana, country, and straight up folk. Cowdery has a pleasant voice that doesn’t try to do anything it can’t. Her songs like “These Ties That Bind” and “Saving for Love” have a unifying theme of peace, humility, and hope. She’s best when doing softer tunes like “One More Door” than when she treads into too-familiar territory on a song like “I Believe.” “Down to the Water” is gentle and pretty, but “Shine on Me Again” drags a little, conveying RJ’s tales of personal strife in the same tones and melodies. Yet this is a pretty solid affair overall, and will certainly please those who like their music on the softer side with lyrics that can mean something from time to time. One More Door is certainly safe sounding, but then again it’s hard to imagine this artist getting too boisterous in her songwriting. (self-released)

RJ Cowdery MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Folk

Zealousy: Complications

November 28, 2008 /

Zealousy is another one of those groups that wants to marry dark theatrics to their pop tunes. That’s fine and all, but this has been done much better before with far greater appeal (think Fuji Minx, for instance). Vocalist Amarie Darvai hits all the notes effortlessly, but there’s something about the mix of opener “Girl on the Edge” that pushes everything into distortionland. The rest of the group plays facelessly behind her, which is fine because you get the feeling this is all really her show. “So I Am” tries to play it off strong-willed and tough, but really doesn’t have claws as long as it likes to think it does. When the band tries for somewhat lighter moments, such as on “Drop,” Darvai’s performance just overshadows the rest of the group. She could stand to hold back just a little at times. A song like “Chemical Imbalance” plays out as annoyingly as you might expect from a group like this. My advice is for Zealousy to find a better producer, and perhaps musicians who don’t constantly take the piss from Amarie’s delivery on every song. It’s okay to be heard as well, you know. Otherwise, these guys are just treading the average waters with a nondescript sound. Ho hum. (self-released)

Zealousy MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, Pop, Rock

Cosmic American Derelicts: Songs from the Homestead

November 25, 2008 /

This electric/acoustic bluegrass boogie band does an amicable job of throwing up some dust on their new nine-track release. “Sleepwalking Killer” gets things off to a good start with lickety-split rhythms, plenty of twanging guitars and a banjo thrown in for good measure. “Same Old” follows almost the same exact formula, except the acoustic guitars take front and center, and the drum sticks are given away for brushes, but the vibe is completely the same. “Barbed Wire Bed” finally steeps itself into rustic bluegrass Americana and ditches the electric guitars altogether, showing off the pure, raw talents of this group. Other tracks that try for the more pop country format, like “Dollar Bill Blues” don’t suit the band as well. Ditto that for the corny clichéd lyrical pursuits of “Drink You off My Mind.” And, well, the closing “Rocktopus” really doesn’t fit at all with the rest of the album. Too bad, because the first half of this disc really is good. When these guys stray from the bluegrass trappings, though, they lose it all over the place.(self-released)

Cosmic American Derelicts MySpace page

Americana, CD Reviews, Country, Pop

Leo: Leo

November 24, 2008 /

This export from Sweden may have a hard time finding wide acceptance over here in the States. There’s something about the three songs on this debut EP that just doesn’t seem to translate well over the speakers. Leo Nielsen’s voice is fine and strong enough, but he seems to be squandering his talents on overdone performances. The first track here, “Let Go (John’s Song)” is a dramatically sappy piece of pop vocalizing, and by the time it’s all over, Leo’s pleading may have you ripping your hair out. “Don’t Ask” really pushes the meters into the red, while Nielsen’s voice misses many notes consistently, while his own layered backing vocals continue to bring down the song. If ever you wanted to hear a guy really try way too hard, then this is your chance. On the other hand, “Fade” is syrupy enough that it seems like it would strike the right chord in the heart of a gal in her late teens. That’s not saying much, considering we already have enough of that kind of stuff (and far better, for that matter) already clogging the charts. (self-released)

Leo MySpace page

CD Reviews, Pop, Soul, Videos

The Reel Banditos: Indochina

October 31, 2008 /

Dig it: an all-instrumental groove-out with a theme about ‘Nam, maaaan. And believe me when I say that it being all-instrumental is this disc’s saving grace when it comes to the source of inspiration. After all, this could have turned into a heavy-handed, politically bent bad trip, and well, ‘Nam’s been done to death in both all seriousness and taking knocks in comedic circles. So sit back and dig the grooves of “Saigon ’67,” which features some groovy percussion, and a cool, toked-out vibe. “Huey” filrts with wah-wah guitars and ’70s Zappa-esque frippery and goes down well. “Jungle Warfare” is laden with heartbeats and a spooky dank ambiance that makes you feel as if you are there. Then there’s the crunchy “Poisoned Sky” which puts R.E.M.’s “Orange Crush” into its pithy place. By the time you make it to “The Fall of Saigon,” you’ll be ripped and spent. Why can’t more artists who feel the need to crank out conceptual chunder follow the Reel Banditos’ lead and just keep their pens quiet and their instruments cranked? Ya got me, but this is one of those left field oddities worth a good listen. (self-released)

Reel Banditos’ MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Instrumental, Pop, Rock

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