Chris Murphy - Water Under the Bridge (2017)

OFFICIAL: http://chrismurphymusic.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/chrismurphymusic1/

TWITTER: https://www.facebook.com/chrismurphymusic1/

Written by William Elgin, posted by blog admin

Chris Murphy’s longstanding career as one of America’s most respected traditional multi-instrumentalists and songwriters has long flown under the mainstream radar, for the most part, but he’s been able to build on what is amounting, at this point, to a real legacy as one of his generation’s brightest songwriting talents. His latest studio release Water Under the Bridge is another expansive fourteen song collection with a wide ranging songwriting sensibility that doesn’t aim for the lowest common folk denominator. Instead, there’s depth and range to Murphy’s sound far outstripping the efforts of similar, perhaps more staid, contemporaries. Water Under the Bridge, likewise, highlights Murphy’s increasing flair for powerful lyrical content as many of these songs make use of the same traditional language without ever imitating it too broadly. Chris Murphy’s recent run has been quite impressive indeed and Water Under the Bridge is another stellar entry in his catalog.

His literary bent shows with the opener “Moveable Feast” and the quasi-ragtime gait of the instrumental is a pleasing, unassuming way of opening things up. The jazz flavor continues with the wonderfully entitled “Joan Crawford Dances the Charleston” and Murphy guides his accompanying players through a relaxed, eminently tasteful jaunt through a variety of light jazz tropes they fire up just a little with the force of their own personalities. “Table for Two”, the album’s first lyric, benefits from a wryly deadpan Murphy vocal and some restrained yet effective humor in the lyrics. Murphy definitely has great skill with language, but his greatest skill is in crafting intelligent yet accessible lyrics for his songs. We’re back into instrumental territory with “Riverboat Blues” and this extended blues work out strikes just the right chord without ever lapsing into purple clichés and the guitar work is especially exemplary. The beautifully titled “I Swear I’m Going to Learn This Time” is a gentle lament with ample style and some real pathos in the lyrics. It’s one of the album’s finest songs.

The track “Benzedrine Shuffle” doesn’t ever reach the manic highs implied by its title, thankfully, and proves one of the more stylish musical performances on Water Under the Bridge. One of the earthier groovers to come along is definitely “Tomcat Blues”, a near Tom Waits tribute with Murphy giving us his best growl and obviously relishing every second of the song’s theatricality. The title song begins with a classic count-in from the drummer and then it’s off to the races with some breezy jazz that affords each instrument in the mix a chance to shine. Water Under the Bridge ends with another powerful instrumental, “Cheer Up Mickey”, that’s just Murphy’s violin and a stomp box making a resounding final musical statement for an album that’s difficult to forget.

Alpha Mule - Peripheral Vision (2017)

OFFICIAL: http://www.alphamulemusic.com/

BANDCAMP: https://alphamule.bandcamp.com/

Written by Raymond Burris, posted by blog admin

Alpha Mule’s ten song debut Peripheral Vision reminds us that traditional music doesn’t need to be considered the purview of aging folkies and museum studies. The forms they utilize over the course of the album’s ten songs remain vital vehicles for self expression and they bring a number of modern touches to bear along the way that enriches the already exceptional songwriting. There are no covers to be found on this release; a pleasant enough surprise. Instead, Joe Forkan and Eric Stoner navigate listeners through an exceptional musical ride that never sounds stilted or imitative. They do a superb job crafting tunes that are reminiscent of longstanding classics in their respective genres yet stand alone as individual works. Peripheral Vision is a wonder in 2017/2018 – a traditionally minded album that, nonetheless, speaks vividly about the creative hearts behind its composition and rife with the sort of kinetic chemistry between players that’s long been a staple of the art.

“Corpus Christi” is the album’s first tune and, far and away, its most self-consciously evocative moment. This is a near ideal example of how the musicians bring modern music making techniques into the traditional music picture and it remains, by album’s end, one of its best tunes. The second track “On the Moon” throws off some low-heat jazzy sparks without ever getting too fancy about it while still culling its sound from the duo’s customary array of influences. There’s a sense of humor with this tune that shows the songwriting’s thorough understanding of traditional country and blues songwriting ethos while never entirely aping them. Some modern touches come through on the track “The Distance” as well – namely the keyboards adding color at critical points in the track. Outside of that, however, there’s still another sturdy traditional spine that makes the song stand straight up for listeners. “Pavlov” moves the album in a clearer blues direction with great success and boasts, arguably, the album’s best lyric.

The move into the blues continues with the song “Mule in the Mine”. Forkan and Stoner draw from a wealth of traditional blues and classic country imagery for this one, but it’s vividly drawn regardless and they bring their own idiosyncratic brand of humor to the piece that enhances its pathos. “The Ballad of Huell Howser” promises, on title alone, something longer, but this sparkling musical workout never overstays its welcome and stands as a model of musical concision quite unlike anything else on Peripheral Vision. The album’s final song “Empire” shows off some larger concerns than the typical micro we hear in the early tunes and the traditional form proves more than capable of sustaining these big thoughts without sounding like it lacks something. Alpha Mule’s Peripheral Vision is a winner from first

Sarah Morris - Hearts in Need of Repair (2017)

OFFICIAL: www.sarahmorrismusic.com

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/sarahmorris10

Written by Frank McClure, posted by blog admin

Sarah Morris’ 3^rd and most recent LP, Hearts in Need of Repair succeeds because it thrives with soul, pulls no punches when it comes to songwriting and has a daring arsenal of instrumentation that mixes the traditional with the exotic and eclectic.  Morris’ lead vocals are the icing on the cake; highly melodic, raw when needed and possessing an excellent range from dirty blues vocalizations to near falsetto.  With a well-oiled band at her side providing guitars, drums, bass, piano, dobro, lap steel and pedal steel, there’s nothing off limits when it comes to the music on display. 

The title track leads the album off and it’s an acoustic-drenched, mid-tempo masterpiece with blue-eyed soul singing, a deep rhythmic foundation and at least three acoustic guitar tracks going.  There’s space around every instrument to make each individual melody stick-out and the nuanced, textured production job by Eric Blomquist, Morris and the band couldn’t have done a better job.  Things aren’t overproduced to the point that there isn’t any edge but everything is refined enough to make a great harmonic impression.  The careening, rollicking “Good at Goodbye” benefits from a flurry of tapping, driving snare drums and some stellar pedal steel playing that whips up a western dust storm when it comes to atmosphere.  A weary, burden-baring blues vibe marks “Cheap Perfume’s” forlorn intro.  Dark electric bass stamps a heavy imprint beneath the shimmering acoustic guitars as the pacing kicks into high gear for the perky country swing that enters at the 50 seconds mark.  All throughout Morris’ lush, organic vocal melodies sending the song into the stratosphere and taking the harmonic component of the band’s music to the next level.

“Helium” is a dreamy, acoustic folk number that employs tranquil harmony vocals behind Sarah’s commanding lead presence.  Its softness is in direct contrast to “Falling Over” and “Course Correction’s” increasing reliance on powerhouse electric guitar grooves and hard-hitting rhythms.  Shane Akers’ dobro and pedal steel enrich the former track with overload of melody and tranquility, providing why it was chosen as the lead single to promote the record.  “Empty Seat” returns to acoustic folk but is much darker than the similarly constructed pieces that appeared before it earlier on in the album’s trajectory.  The heavy, gluey electric guitar and bass riffs make for some warts n’ all blues on “Shelter or the Storm.”  Vicky Emerson adds harmony vocals to Morris’ lead and the result is nothing short of pure magic.  More lap steel accoutrements and a 3^rd acoustic guitar played by producer Eric Blomquist brushes shoulders and conjures musical catharsis alongside the heavier riffing.  “Nothing Compares” is another beautiful folk piece while the closing couplet of “On a Stone” and “Confetti” delve deep into acoustic/electric blues unfolded at a slow, forceful tempo. 

All in all, Hearts in Need of Repair is a fantastic aural romp that’s an old soul at heart.  Stellar songwriting, vocals and instrumentation combine into a true force of nature that astounds and amazes at every bend.  Any fan of acoustic and electric blues, country, soul, rock and folk will find one monumental achievement after another in the album’s 11 rich tracks.

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot - Songs for Mixed Company (2017)

OFFICIAL: https://www.thunderboltandlightfootband.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/thunderboltandlightfoot/

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thunderboltandlightfootband/

Written by David Shouse, posted by blog admin

Minnesota produces another winner with the collaboration between singer/songwriters Phil Barry and Sarah Fuersst dubbed Thunderbolt and Lightfoot. Their self-titled EP heralded the arrival of a duo with great chemistry and the good sense to involve the right collaborators, but their first full length album Songs for Mixed Company realizes that promise and much, much more. The album’s ten songs plumb deep into the Americana tradition of folk, country, and even a smattering of blues, but the duo reaches beyond the boundaries of those forms by incorporating instruments like organ and even Mellotron to accentuate their musical vision. These two experienced hands, despite naming their project after an irreverent 1970’s cinema classic, are anything but tongue in cheek. The songwriting deals with eternal human emotions – fear, loss, yearning, and love all make an appearance here and they make these emotions matter in narratives reaching deep into human experience.

They begin things on a darker note with the track “Let’s Br Friends”. On the surface of it, the songwriting seems to be covering familiar territory, but the songwriting talents Barry and Fuerst bring to bear explore facets of experience going beyond the typical cursory treatment common to these kind of songs. There’s beautifully simple poetry laced through these lyrics and Barry’s voice seamlessly comes together with Fuerst in an aching vocal marriage. The retro country music beauty of “Miss Me” has an elegance that few, if any, working in the genre today even dare aspire to and it never sounds like a pose. The scattered steel guitar licks color in the spaces between acoustic guitar chords and the drumming underlines everything with a strong foundation. Barry and Fuerst conjure up that “weepy” quality distinguishing many classic country cuts without ever sounding forced or overwrought. The character piece “Can’t Be Trusted” paints the darkest musical picture yet on Songs for Mixed  Company, but it is handled with such dramatic deftness that it draws listeners in and never drags them down.. The crystalline guitar lines and sensitive vocal treatment cut against the sharply observed character delineation present in the lyrics. Barry sings this song without a hint of irony and it will have a chilling effect on many who hear it.

The steady stomp and match of “Year of the Monkey” seems a little bit simple, but Thunderbolt and Lightfoot show the keen ear for adding tempered crescendos and Mike Lynch’s artful turns on organ. It’s, arguably, one of the album’s strongest tunes lyrically, especially on the song’s chorus where the arrangement, text, and vocal performances come together in an undeniably powerful away. “Sweetest Baby” has a nice breezy air despite the struggle and longing running through its lyric – it’s that effortless lift summoned by the drumming and Mike Lynch’s whispery organ flourishes refuse to let the song’s melancholy take over entirely. There’s a light blues influence meeting the folk on the last song “Dearly Beloved”, but there’s also some endearing humor propping up the lyric rather than keeping a stone face throughout. It’s an appropriately playful ending to an album that’s usually anything but, but Songs for Mixed Company definitely proves this duo has real creative legs and is building something that may last for years to come.  

Russ Still and the Moonshiners - Still Cookin' (2017)

OFFICIAL: http://russstill.com

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/RussStillandtheMoonshiners/

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/rbstill2

Written by Charles Hatton, posted by blog admin

Genre collisions either happen harmoniously or else devolve into disjointed reminders of how everything doesn’t go together. Guitar rock melded with country in the early 70s, thusly creating the stylistic shake-up “southern rock” or “country rock.”  Flagship bands kept it going through the 80s, but many of them gave in to the pressures of 80s pop; adding new-wave’s synths and Top 100 melodies.  It didn’t work and the genre has since gone underground with a few pockets still taking creative liberties in the early twenty first century.

Russ Still and the Moonshiners are one of those bands to keep the fire stoked.  Led by songwriter/guitarist/vocalist Russ Still, the band is happy to shake the notion that southern rock was just an increasingly smaller audience remembers in the current times.  The Internet keeps it alive, but attendance at these shows is still not what they used to be.  It reflects the fickleness of the marketplace and popular tastes rather than acting as a critical barometer for the style’s enduring value. Opening with the diesel-fueled, guitar lick packed “Promised Land,” the band’s second album Still Cookin’ immediately offers plenty to love for the genre’s purists.  It’s got groove to spare, kickin’ guitar riffs, a telepathic rhythm section and great vocals laying down sing-a-long melodies.  Russ Still and the gang quickly prove that they aren’t a one trick pony as the entire album is packed with songs of this caliber (finely played and produced ones to boot). 

You get the monstrous, winding ballads with acoustic/electric transitions and free-wheeling vocals (“Long Way from Home,” “I Can’t,” and “10,000 Ways.”)  These ballads are beautifully jammed with acoustics, keyboards, huge hooks and thrusts of electric guitar in all of the right places.  Then there are the rockers that follow in the fine tradition of “Promised Land” such as “Glorine’s,” “Goin’ Fishin’,” “Juanita,” the dirge-riff highlight “Workin’ Class Hunter” and high-octane closer “Run Away.”  The songwriting is polished but the tunes have the requisite rough edges to make them fine examples of the genre’s forefathers and hella catchy n’ cool too. 

Still Cookin’ does really nothing wrong and everything right from the first note to the last.  It’s gravelly enough to win over the hard rock crowd and soulful enough to please country fans, which is exactly what good southern rock should do in the first place.