Category: CD QuickTakes (Page 67 of 149)

Hot Club of Cowtown: Wishful Thinking

September 11, 2009 /

The best thing about Wishful Thinking is the lack of ironic, tongue-in-cheek posturing. The Hot Club of Cowtown plays a sincere, honest blend of Western swing and hot Gypsy jazz that’s thankfully parody-free. The weakest thing about ’em is, sadly, the vocals, which are a bit thin for music this passionate. I found myself wishing more than once that they were an all-instrumental band, in fact. Luckily, the palpable sense of exuberance and the command of their instruments is almost enough for Elana James (fiddle, vocals), Whit Smith (guitar, vocals) and Jake Erwin (upright bassist) to get by on. And the vocals aren’t so bad that you’ll find yourself turning Wishful Thinking off, either. It’s obvious this band has the chops and experience to exhilarate an audience, whether live (they’ve appeared on such diverse stages as the Grand Ol’ Opry to the Glastonbury Festival to “Prairie Home Companion” to opening for as well as backing both Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson) or on record (this is their first new album in five years, and the first-ever with drums), which lend such a crackling energy to the proceedings you’ll wonder how they ever did without ’em. (Thirty Tigers, 2009)

Hot Club of Cowtown MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Jazz

Gordon Gano and the Ryans: Under the Sun

September 11, 2009 /

Nine years removed from the demise of the Violent Femmes, erstwhile head Femme Gordon Gano has left his past as a folk-punk godfather behind, both literally (Femmes classic “Blister in the Sun” is now a Wendy’s commercial jingle) and musically, via his latest artistic incarnation as the frontman for Gordon Gano and the Ryans. Under the Sun, the fruit of a years-long, postal service-assisted collaboration with former Bogmen Brendan and Billy Ryan, provides Gano’s grating adenoidal whine with a thicker, more colorful musical backdrop than it usually enjoys – which is nice, certainly, but what would make it nicer is a set of uniformly solid songs. Now 46, Gano is still most effective when plumbing the depths of rock & roll whimsy, and when the band dares to be stupid here – as on “Way That I Creep” and “Oholah Oholibah” – Under the Sun can be a lot of fun despite his extreme vocal limitations. Too much of the album, however, gets – pardon the pun – bogged down in melody-deficient ponderousness to hold much interest. Femmes loyalists will probably miss the acidic bite of Gano’s earlier work, but there’s no denying this new partnership offers sonic vistas far more expansive than those offered by his better-known band. With enough time and some stronger material, it might just give him something interesting to do with all that Wendy’s money. (Yep Roc 2009)

Gordon Gano and the Ryan Brothers MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Rob Blackledge: Inside These Walls

September 11, 2009 /

Mississippi-raised and Nashville-based Rob Blackledge was torn between pursuing a career in baseball or in music. But his love of music was affirmed after he decided to attend Belmont University in Nashville, a music industry hub, when Blackledge won a talent contest and had a positive crowd reaction leave him wanting more of that artist/audience connection that can be magical when it’s right. Blackledge honed his craft while touring with Nashville favorite son Dave Barnes, co-wrote country act Love and Theft’s “Runaway,” then later signed with One Revolution Entertainment. Now Blackledge has his own debut album, Inside These Walls, and his wide range of influences are all there for the world to see – James Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder and Ben Folds among them. That may seem crazy, but it’s not – Blackledge is accomplished on both piano and guitar, his melodies soar with his falsetto (which he wisely does not overuse), and everything is tied together nicely by producer Jeff Coplan. Among a solid set of songs, the best ones are the hummable “Early Morning Riser,” the radio-ready “Should Have Known Better,” and the understated R&B-infused beauty, “Worth Taking” – the latter of which could be a huge Top 40 hit in the right hands. (One Revolution Entertainment 2009)

Rob Blackledge MySpace page

Adult Contemporary, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Rock

Kevin Hearn and Thinbuckle: Havana Winter

September 11, 2009 /

Let’s face it – solo albums can be a mixed bag. On the one hand, they’re often an outgrowth of un-served creative expression and an opportunity to reveal a side of the musician that’s otherwise buried in the group mix. On the other, they can also be nothing more than an indulgence in excess, an artistic statement so far removed from the mainstream that only the most diehard fan or hardcore eccentric would dare dally in the overflow. Fortunately, keyboardist Kevin Hearn’s individual offerings fall in the former category, and after five albums that offer some respite from his day job with Barenaked Ladies, he’s managed to carve himself a pleasant little side niche. There’s little of the Ladies’ kookiness or quirkiness to be found here, although the lead-off track, “Coma,” does come close (“It’s time to come out of your coma”). Mostly though, Havana Winter is a fairly sunny – and sedate –affair, one that manages to conjure up the same sort of giddy effusiveness often identified with groups like the Lilac Time, the Lightning Seeds, and others of that more melodic ilk. The cooing caress of “On the Runway” and “Luna” provide an irresistibly engaging ambiance that makes return listens practically mandatory, while the rollicking “Huntsville, CA” picks up the pace and applies a certain perky proviso with it. If there is any complaint to be made, it’s that with only seven songs, Hearn is skimping on quantity even though he’s clearly over-delivering in quality. Regardless, Havana Winter is a wonderful revelation and one that suggests Hearn ought to be heard from a lot more. (Six Shooter Records 2009)

Kevin Hearn MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Rock, Widescreen

Yo La Tengo: Popular Songs

September 10, 2009 /

Umpteen albums into Yo La Tengo’s nearly quarter-century of existence, it seems that they’ve finally hit on a spectacular balance. No, Popular Songs is not a compilation (though the band’s actual ‘best of,’ Prisoners of Love, is somewhat less satisfying than Popular Songs), but it might as well be. It finds the band smoothing out some of its rough edges without totally abandoning their rough-and-tumble approach to indie rock. The opener in particular, “Here to Fall,” sweeps the listener into the air with a strings-and-keyboard arrangement that’ll stir up wet dreams of Paul Buckmaster making love to Georgia Hubley and Ira Kaplan’s interpersonal-musical union with muted fire and momentum. This could easily be the sound of Yo La blowing their wad way too early, but as it turns out, it neatly sets up the rest of the record to roll through ‘60s homages like the Farfisa fun-time “Periodically Double or Triple” and the Lovin’ Spoonful-esque “I’m On My Way” (try singing “Didn’t Want to Have to Do It” over the verses), and on into three lengthy drones that could easily be the perfect soundtrack to getting stoned. (Matador 2009)

Yo La Tengo MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Indie Labels, Rock

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