The Shadow's 2010 End of Year list

10. Black Mountain - Wilderness Heart

2008's In The Future, their second album, was one of the absolute highlights for that year. Don't be fooled because the Canadians' new one is just as good even though the songs may be a little more compact.
Heavy prog rock with some acoustic interludes thrown in for good measure. Honestly, I'm looking forward to some new product from their doomier offshoot Lightning Dust.
Essential tracks : The Hair Song, Rollercoaster, Let Spirits ride.


9. Ray Lamontagne - God Willin' & The Creek Don't Rise

Music wise Ray's 4th release leans close to his debut 'Trouble'. Back to his acoustic roots after the dark 'Till the Sun Turns Black' and 'Gossip in the Grain' where he lost the plot somewhat.
Recorded in his home with a small backing band, the songs and his voice shine like liquid silver.
Good to see the appearance of Greg Leisz on pedal steel. On of the greatest sidemen ever.
Essential tracks : Repo Man, This Love Is over, Beg Steal or Borrow.


8. Eli 'Paperboy' Reed - Come and Get It

White boy retro soul but what a stupid cd cover. Reed's official second are once more original tunes that wouldn't sound out of place in the late 60's catalogues from Stax or Atlantic.
He sings, he shouts, he growls just like the late Wilson Pickett. 'Come and get it' has a smoother production than the previous 'Roll with it' but that shouldn't spoil the fun. Groovin', funky and some mean ballads too.
Essential tracks : Name Calling, Time Will Tell, Pick A Number.


7. Los Lobos - Tin Can Trust

Los Lobos never made a bad album and that's a fact. These East L.A.'ers have been going for 32 years now and on their latest they're tackling the financial meltdown of America. Never let it be said they are not political aware and they certainly don't hesitate to defend the poor.
I nominate them this year not only for this album but, in fact, for their entire oeuvre. Richly deserved.
Essential tracks : Burn It Down, West L.A. Fadeaway.


6. Woven Hand - The Treshingfloor

Noone will ever take away David Eugene Edwards' crown as the emperor of doom. Not Nick Cave, not Leonard Cohen.
Whether he goes under the moniker of 16 Horsepower or Woven Hand his dark preachings and strong religious lyrics will remain my absolute favorite.
No surprises here, genius songs as usual.
Essental tracks : all of them really.

5. Black Country Communion

OK so forget the supergroup tag for a minute and let's call it this year's Wolfmother album. Solid Seventies hard rock with a modern twist. No sign of fatigue in Glenn Hughes' voice and this album gives Joe Bonamassa an excellent chance to shine outside the blues genre. And shine he does.
Even if BCC proves to be just a one album project they certainly delivered and already added a classic to the genre.
Essential tracks : One Last Soul, Beggarman, Song of Yesterday, No Time, Medusa.




4. Tony Joe White - The Shine

Now this was a very nice surprise. Simply the best album White's made in the last 30 years of his long career. Very directly recorded, no fancy production tricks from his son Jody this time. Voice all to the fore instruments far in the back. Intimate, warm, White's voice a swampy growl, primitive backing and fantastic songs. I'm impressed!
TJ may very well never write another hit but I don't care. He's done enough of that in his 67 years.
Essential tracks : Season Man, Roll Train Roll, All.


3. JJ Grey & Mofro - Georgia Warhorse

From the Louisiana Swamp Fox to the swamps of Florida. Grey's actually from North Florida but who gives? This man goes from strength to strenght and again his 5th album is full of back porch soul, swamp country and a certain kind of southern rock. Majestic music. Grey will probably never be big but you could do worse than check out his music. Your foot will keep tapping I assure you.
Essential tracks : King Hummingbird, Diyo Dayo, Georgia Warhorse, Slow hot & Sweaty.


2. Bruce Springsteen - The Promise

You simply cannot call this a reissue. The songs are over 30 years old but never saw an official release and, above all, come from the best period of his entire career.
Bands could build entire careers with songs like these. Bruce considered them not fit enough to be heard by us. I agree to the fact that only a couple would have fit onto 'Darkness' but there's enough to have made up an album between 'Born to run' and 'Darkness' especially since a lot have that big sound so well knows from the former. A proper historical document that's what 'The Promise' really is.
Essential tracks : Because The Night, Rendezvous, Talk To Me, The Little Things, Ain't Good Enough For You.




1. The Black Keys - Brothers

 First place goes to The Black Keys for - and I quote myself - "Lifting the genre of plodding blues rock to new and exciting heights".
When Dan Auerbach's solo album came out I was thinking hey! I hope he does something similar for the band. And now he did it too.
The Black Keys are no longer simply a guitar/drums duo but have expanded their sound while staying true to their chosen genre. The falsetto voice helps as well.
Plus, and that's a big plus, the whole cd is full of fantastic songs.
While I've been a fan from the beginning I honestly never imagined they would one year take the top spot.
Essential tracks : Everlasting Light, Next Girl, Tighten Up, Howlin' For You, The Only One, Sinister Kid, The Go Getter, I'm Not The One.

Black Dub - Black Dub (2010)

Another supergroup of sorts. Daniel Lanois, top producer and acclaimed musician's musician, put together his new project with Brain Blade on drums (Norah Jones, Wayne Shorter) and Louisiana bassist Daryl Johnson (Neville Brothers).
They are joined by 23 year old Trixie Whitley, daughter of Chris. Her Belgian mother is the sister of dEUS' bassist.

It's especially her voice that brings this project off. Pure but raw enough to entertain.
The name Black Dub is well chosen because the music incorporates several elements of the dub culture on the one hand. On the other there's Lanois' voodoo soundscapes that sizzle and crackle like a tumbleweed trown on a hot barbeque pit.
The production is outstanding, crystal clear drum sound and heavy basslines without being overintruding.
But then one wouldn't expect anything less from Lanois.
The songs. There's pure gospel in 'Canaan', 'I believe in you' is a dub heavy excersise while 'Surely' is a purely sexy ballad brought off by Trixie's unbelievable voice.
In some songs I can even hear influences of T-Bone Burnett even though he wasn't at the sessions.
You'll also find two Lanois instrumentals 'Slow baby' and 'Sirens' that have his trademark deep haunting waves of electronic guitar.

Black Dub, the album, came out rather late in the year and I won't change my personal top 10 of the year for it. Still, truth be told, it deserves a place in it.
Not your everyday pop music this but a very laidback album to enjoy.

Tony Joe White - The Shine (2010)

That's the cover.
I need to tell you about this album, friends. Came out about a month ago and it is definitely the best work he's done in almost 20 years.
Others have made his early songs into worldwide superhits so let's not go there. The royalties from those alone were probably enough for Tony Joe to buy up half the properties in his home state of Louisiana.
During the 80's he only made a few albums that were not up to par with his earlier work but then he got a second break. Tina Turner recorded a couple of his new songs ('Steamy windows' anyone?) and suddenly TJ got a new management and recording deal out of it.

That's his 1991 comeback album and worth every cent it was too. His own version of 'Windows', 'Undercover agent for the blues' and two of the best songs he ever wrote: 'Tunica motel' and 'Closer to the truth'.
After that a steady stream of recorded work followed with another highlight being:

 
 where TJ duets with the likes of Emmylou Harris, Jessie Colter, Lucinda Williams, Shelby Lynne and daughter Michelle.
All of his work has that swamp sound, hot and brooding and in his guitar parts you can clearly hear where Mark Knopfler got his ideas from.
But back to 'The Shine'.
There's something real special about this album. While the sound is warm and direct you'll have to listen close to hear the voice. White almost whispers his lyrics and the sparse backing is even further in the background.
Some songs have just an acoustic guitar and harmonica, there's hardly any electric lead to be heard.
I counted exactly one up tempo ('Strange night')  the rest are formidable in their laid backness.
The best here? 'Season man', classical Tony Joe White. 'Roll train roll', Delta folk blues. 'Ain't doin' nobody no good', a swamp blues drone.
A most satisfying album from the 67 year old Swamp Fox. 

Left Lane Cruiser (Fort Wayne, Indiana)

While deciding upon my Album of the Year 2010 (more about that later) I was reminded of a fine and unbelievable band I discovered only this year.
Their two official albums date  2008 and 2009 so they don't count as new. Pity.
Left Lane Cruiser is a two man guitar/drums outfit not unlike the Black Keys (hint!) but they're totally steeped in the Hill Country punk blues of R.L.Burnside.
Together they make an ungodly racket since Bren Beck not only plays the drums but also everything else he can knock on. He also provides a mean call-and-response to guitarist/vocalist Freddie J Evans IV with grunts, hollers and shouts in the background.

Their 2008 release. Lots of slide guitar and gravelly vocals, mostly up tempo numbers and every percussive instrument including the kitchen sink thrown in. The Black Keys almost seem tame in comparison while the Black Box Revelation can still learn a thing or two from this crew.
You can almost hear the fights breaking out in the barroom and the whiskey glasses shattering on the hardwood floor. Except the duo's raw blues sound would drown everything else out.

 
2009 and more of the same rough and ragged slide blues where Jon Spencer never dared to thread.
These guys are really really good even though they can be enervating after a while. But if you have a taste for this kind of music you're in for a nice surprise.

JJ Grey & Mofro (Florida, USA)

Country got Soul.
That's one way to describe what this is all about. Another would be that John 'JJ' Grey is the bastard son of John Fogerty and Tony Joe White with a big dollop of Otis Redding thrown in the mix.
You see my friends, this band from Jacksonville plays that swamp groove to perfection and doesn't forget to throw in some solid funk for good measure.
They released their first two albums under the Mofro name then changed labels and became JJ Grey & Mofro.
Though it was clear from the beginning that Grey was the main man I suspect the label change had something to do with the name change. The current situation is that Mofro indeed became an ever changing carousel of backing musicians.

Although all 5 of the albums are interchangeably perfect, the third one is my personal favorite.

Opens with a fiery swamp rocker 'War' (not the Edwin Starr one) goes on to the funky 'Country Ghetto' and the slow groove of 'Tragic' then the horn filled 'By my side' and the highlight 'On Palestine' a piano heavy ballad.
That's five shots to the head in 20 minutes.

The fourth album is the most horn driven and a bit more smoothly produced. Dan Prothero is the man that's done all the albums so far and they were all recorded at the same Retrophonics studio on antique equipment.
JJ Grey believes in tradition.


This year saw the release of the latest and a return to the guitar. Less horns.

Again a mix of funk, swamp rock and slow burn ballads. Opener 'Diyo dayo' harks back to the voodoo stomp of Dr.John while 'Slow, hot & sweaty' is, well, pure sex.

JJ Grey simply deserves to be heard for he is a true craftsman with a love for all things traditional and environmental. I hope one day he'll get the fame he so rightly deserves and I'm pretty sure he won't go the Kings of Leon way when that day arrives.
  

Some recommended Springsteen associates

From around the time of Darkness and The Promise.

Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes - Hearts of Stone (1978)

Long time compadres of the E-Street Band and mentored by Steve Van Zandt who also arranged and produced their first two albums.
Once again for their third 'Hearts of Stone' Little Steven manned the producer's chair and wrote the bulk of the material.
Springsteen contributed two songs, 'Talk to me' (his own version is on 'The Promise') and the fantastic ballad that is the title song.
The Jukes have the strongest horn section in the world and they would later serve Miami Steve well on his first solo outing. Even the Boss himself has used La Bamba and friends on some of his outtakes.
Hearts of Stone is also the album where Southside Johnny attempted te get out from under the wings of his long time friend. No cover versions, no guest vocalists.
And plenty of great horn driven rock songs.
'Trapped again', 'Take it inside' and 'Got to be a better way home' are the examples here while 'This time baby's gone for good' and the title track are ballads at their most soulful.
I need to mention that Southside Johnny is the best vocalist of the three. He has more edge in his voice than Bruce and Steve, let's face it, never was the strongest of singers.
After 'Hearts of Stone' Southside and the Jukes parted company with Steve Van Zandt until 13 years later they reunited for the 'Better Days' album.
The band's still going but this one is their definitive best.

Gary U.S. Bonds - Dedication & On the Line (1981/82)

In the early sixties Bonds had a huge hit with 'Quarter to three' a song Bruce often played as an encore to his live shows.One fine day Bruce and his cohort Little Steven decided to re-boost their old hero Gary US Bonds' career.
The resulting albums was 'Dedication' released in April 1981.
Bruce wrote three songs while Little Steven wrote one and produced the album.
The E-Streeters were used as the main backup musicians.
The Miami Steve track 'Daddy's come home' -a ballad- along with Springsteen's 'This little girl' are the stand out tracks as is 'Jolé Blon' where Gary and Bruce duet.
There also covers of Jackson Browne's 'The Pretender', Dylan's 'From a Buick 6' and the Beatles' 'It's only love'.
Bonds retains his gritty soulful voice and the album overall sounds like...the E-Street Band in party mode with a different singer.

A year later the same formula was repeated with 'On the line' released in June 1982.
This time Bruce donated 7 songs. Amongst them a terrific ballad called 'Club Soul City' and staple rockers such as 'Hold on', 'Out of work', 'Rendezvous' (now also on 'The Promise') and 'Angelyne'.
Another solid barroom party album that gave Gary US Bonds a second career.

Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul - Men without women (1982)

Dressed as an outlaw pirate long before Keith Richards got his role in Pirates of the Caribean, Miami Steve was with Bruce Springsteen from the beginning.
At the age of 32 he finally got to record his own first solo record and it certainly belongs in any top 5 of debut albums that's for sure.
His band the Discipels of Soul were all veterans of the scene. There was Dino Danelli  and Felix Cavaliere from the Rascals and Richie 'La Bamba' Rosenberg's horn section straight out of the Asbuy Jukes.
In fact, their previous album 'Hearts of Stone' counted as the blueprint for 'Men without women'.
Steve wrote all but one song himself and the music is a bit more guitar driven.
But the horns have it.
From the smashing opener 'Lyin' in a bed of fire' to 'Save me' to 'Angel eyes' and 'Forever' it's unimpeachable blue eyed soul all the way. This band simply cooks.
My personal favorite is yet again a ballad 'Princess of Little Italy'.
A triumphant debut.
Steve would come out later with more albums but they were all more political inspired songs such as 'Sun City', 'Solidarity', 'Pretoria' and 'Native Americans'. Diminishing returns.
But 'Men without women' stand as a true masterpiece of big band rock.

Bruce Springsteen - The Promise (2010)

Bruce Springsteen is the Stephen King of Rock 'n Roll. King writes 1.000 page novels and keeps churning them out. I've always wondered how he does that all on his own. Sometimes he releases outtakes.
His two latest story collections 'Just after sunset' and 'Full dark no stars' are just that. Outtakes.
Sometimes he still comes through with a real corker. 'Cell' was like that.
Sometimes he releases a double album of which side 4 show an artist not finding a satisfactory ending. That one is called 'Under the dome'.
But enough of King.

Bruce Springsteen writes 'em by the dozen, records 'em and puts 'em in a box for thirty years.
I am not of the opinion that Bruce's first two albums were the only worthwhile ones he's ever done. Yes, I'm looking at you, Johnny Slider.
He's been great for many years, his fame deserved, but to me his last couple of albums were merely routine.

Is 'The promise' worth buying? Certainly. For a Bruce fan it is life blood. A must.
Will the casual fan be charmed? Doubtful.
After all these songs are over 30 years old and the fact that they were written and recorded during one of his most fruitful periods will probably be not enough to lure the one-cd-a-month punter.
Every reviewer will mention the fact that because of a legal battle with his former manager Bruce was not allowed to release one note of music for three years. But that didn't stop him from recording. So let's not go there.

Can we consider these songs to be the missing link between 'Born to run' and what became the final 'Darkness on the edge of town'?
Not really. In view of the fact that 'Darkness' was such a narrow, one direction only album, these songs go in too many different directions.
Also, he gave a fair few to other artists. 'Because the night' to Patti Smith, 'Rendezvous' to Gary U.S. Bonds.
'Talk to me' ended up on a Southside Johnny album. And, yes, 'Fire' went to the Pointer Sisters.
All of these are on 'The promise'.
What else? Some early versions of 'Racing in the street' and 'Candy's room' (Candy's boy here).
Some big Spectorian productions with 'Gotta get that feeling' and 'Someday (we'll be together)' probably written with Ronnie Spector's voice in mind.
The elusive title track in a band version with one verse missing. That one already was on the 'Tracks' box in a 1999 piano only version.
There's also a hidden track often bootlegged never officially released. It's 'The way' a great song.

One big omission from 'Darkness' surely must be 'Because the night'. A majestic piece of music, the best he's ever written. Only Bruce knows why he left it off.


Is 'The promise' the missing link between 'Born to run' and 'Darkness'?
Pruned down to a single disc it may have been. There's plenty of great ones to chose from.
But then the question would be: could 'Darkness' have ended up the dark and stark masterpiece it now is?


P.S. 'The promise' rates 5 stars not only for the music but also for the historic document it really is.

Iommi/Hughes - Fused (2005)

I was pleasantly surprised by the recent Black Country Communion album. You know, the -ahem- new supergroup.
As I've always liked bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes from way back when he started out with Trapeze I decided to have a look around. And came up with this little gem:

Now Glenn already sang on the Sabs' album Seventh Star, truth be told a Tony Iommi solo effort in all but the name.
Both also worked together before on the aborted 1996 DEP sessions which finally saw a release in 2009.
Both gentlemen decided to record a proper record and that's what became Fused.

Don't expect pure Black Sabbath here. Hughes voice is just too strong for that. Although the über riffmeister Iommi is in full swing  and creates some monster riffs, there are actually a couple melodic songs here.
Highlights certainly are Wasted Again, What You're Living For and Grace.
Fused may be considered by many as a little side project but if you like your music heavy and metal here's a nice surprise in this little known album.  

Cheap genre compilation (pt 2) - Hillbilly

Hillbilly, another forgotten genre that came out of the 1920's and 30's. The soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou? sold over two million copies and reminded us that it had once existed.
The original music came mainly from the rural Southern states and was made by black and white folk alike.

Here is a cheap (around £ 3) compilation that gathers the old folks and some of the newer ones:

Subtitled American Bluegrass, Appalachian and Old Timey Country this cd is a great overview covering the most classic artists of the genre.
The Carter Family gets two tracks then there's Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt&Earl Scruggs, Ralph Stanley, Doc Watson, Del McCoury and Hazel Dickens.
On the more contemporary side you'll find Gillian Welch, Ricky Scaggs duetting with Emmylou Harris and Allison Krauss singing lead on the Cox Family track.
Also of note is Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia's sideband Old & In the Way and the Kentucky Colonels whose Clarence White would later join the Byrds.

The music's acoustic, lots of mandoline, banjo and fiddle. And heavenly voices with lots of harmonies.

A very worthwhile introduction to some older music.

Crucial Reggae

Forget about Bob Marley. Oh yeah, he was reggae's superstar commercially marketed by Chris Blackwell.
OK, so his music was good as well.

Here's some essential albums that let you hear what true reggae was all about:

More about them later!

A boost for a record label

Glitterhouse is a combined record label/mail order service out of Germany.
They still send out a monthly paper catalogue about 60 pages thick.
Although their prices have gone up recently and they take their time delivering (usually 3 weeks) they always have lots of cheap stuff on offer as well.

I have been a fan of their record label for a number of years now. Ever since, in fact, I discovered Sixteen Horsepower.
If you should happen to be a fan of that band and of David Eugene Edwards' new vehicle Woven Hand then this label is for you.

You could start by ordering this:

A double CD that'll cost you 2.95 €. It's a perfect overview of what the label is all about.

Apart from the two bands mentioned above other well known acts on Glitterhouse would be Pere Ubu, The Walkabouts, Midnight Choir and Willard Grant Conspiracy.
Save for Pere Ubu I own practically everything by the others. All good stuff

But for every one of those there's more acts that operate in the same vein.
Washington, Ben Weaver, Baskery, Hazeldine, Hobotalk, Get Well Soon, Timesbold.
The genre? Call it Americana, Gothic Country, Country Noir. You get my drift.

If you would happen to take a peek at their website http://label.glitterhouse.com/ then check out the 'mail order only' section as well. You can't go wrong with these:

Not in the shops, friends!



Personal favorites of mine? Here's some:

Go on and take a look. Let Glitterhouse Records surprise you.

Free - Tons of Sobs (1968)

If you were to ask me what the best debut LP ever was then this is the one.
The year 1968, me 14 years old.
Out of the British Blues boom grows the Bluesrock scene and, no, Free weren't the first to arrive.
John Mayall, the Godfather, went through his Bluesbreakers personnel faster than a McDonald's franchise but he delivered some great names.
Clapton to Cream, Page to Led Zeppelin, Keef Hartley to his own band, Green/Fleetwood/McVie to Fleetwood Mac, Mick Taylor to the Stones. I could go on.

Free's bass player Andy Fraser played a couple of gigs with Mayall. He was 15 years old then and dated the daughter of Alexis Korner,another British legend. It was Korner's recommendation that got him the Mayall gig.
It was also Korner who got Andy Fraser together with the other future members of Free and helped them to their recording contract with Island Records.

Guitarist Paul Kossoff and drummer Simon Kirke played in a standard blues band called Black Cat Bones and recruited singer Paul Rodgers. Free was born.

Tons of Sobs opens and closes with Over the Green Hills a subdued acoustic affair. If you want to hear the full version then I'm afraid you'll have to get the 5 cd boxed set Songs of Yesterday...
From then on it's full strut, male oriented blues rock with Kossoff's guitar shining in all the songs.
Worry, Walk in my Shadow, Wild Indian Woman, I'm a mover.
Koss' masterpiece however is a cover. The Hunter written by Booker T and all his MG's.
For a long while this was Free's live showstopper with Koss' Gibson wailing like a derainged and derailed freight train.
Look up a live take of their version and be prepared to fall flat on your ass.


In this day and age the cd version of Tons of Sobs comes with eight bonus tracks. Visions of Hell is particulary worthwhile as this was intended to be included on the album but was replaced with The Hunter at the last minute.

If you think Allright Now was all Free ever did you're wrong. That was probably their worst song.
Tons of Sobs is the place to start I assure you.

Otis Blackwell (Brooklyn, USA)

From the liner notes:
"There aren't many performers who can sing a program of originals written by himself which is at the same time is a program of Rock 'n Roll standards."

Well, Tony Joe White is another one I can think of.
But it is true, Otis Blackwell wrote many songs that became huge hits for others.
For instance, he gave up 50% of the copyright of Don't Be Cruel to Elvis Presley because this young man from Tupelo was 'going to turn the music business around'.


And didn't it just? After all, 50% of a whole lot is better than 100% of nothing.

Wait! There's more.
Otis also wrote All Shook Up, Return to Sender for Elvis. Great Balls of Fire and Breathless for Jerry Lee Lewis. Fever for Peggy Lee. Handy Man for James Taylor. And I have a fantastic version of his Daddy Rolling Stone  by Phil Alvin somewhere.

I bought the cd pictured here for 3 €uro yesterday at a fair. Without even looking for it.
Now Otis was mainly a songwriter, he doesn't have that great a voice. He also had the bad habit of recording several other cd's with the same hit songs over and over.

If you should come across one of these cheap get it asap. It's a historical document of the man who made others into big stars with songs he indeed did write.

Cheap genre compilations (pt 1) - Rockabilly

£ 3 or 5 € will get you this one.
And a real scorcher it is. 50 tracks on two cd's for next to no money will let you discover the all but forgotten genre that is Rockabilly.

The Clash's Brand New Cadillac? Iggy Pop's Real Wild Child?
They're here in their original versions.
As are the better known originals such as Carl Perkins' Blue Suede Shoes or Elvis' Mystery Train and Baby Let's Play House.
Ubangi Stomp? Race with the Devil? Here.
Johnny Burnette? Johnny Kidd & the Pirates? Here.


What makes this compilation most interesting are of course the lesser known names and they're provided in abundance.
Why so cheap? Easy, most if not all songs are out of copyright.

If you ever wondered where acts like The Stray Cats or Robert Gordon learned their trade then this is the place to start.
I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

The Sore Losers (B)

These guys came second in this years' prestige filled Humo's Rock Rally, a bi-annual Battle of the Bands that already made a couple of Belgians famous. In Belgium.
They chose a bit of a shitty name for themselves but the winners, R.E.M.-lite School is Cool, did even worse.
Uncool names seemed to be the new cool this year.

I read a review calling their eponymous debut 70's rock. Now, if one wants to hear 70's rock one should be better off listening to Black Country Communion.
This is sturdy, balanced 2010 rock.

I could compare the Sore Losers to a band from the other side of the country, The Van Jets (now that is a cool name).
Equal on the rock front, less glam though.
The Jets too made a stunning debut album, Electric Soldiers, only to follow it up with Cat Fit Fury their disappointing second.

Minor quibbles. The singer often sings with a 2x4 up his ass and the lyrics sound a bit clichéed now and then.
"I'm blind but now I can see", "It's gonna hurt you a lot more than it's gonna hurt me".
Otherwise the guitarist proves his chops beyond the call of duty and that's the real reason the whole cd steams like steamroller or a bulldozer.

Beyond Repair and Silver Seas are drenched with rock 'n roll pur sang and my favorite Hollow Tree has this great tottering intro that makes the song just great.

There are really not that many country or slide references here. At least not in the foreground.
Coming Home perhaps the most obvious.

Good, solid from beginning to end. A band to watch live no doubt.
But you could always begin listening to this, their first full work.

Disappointed, my little ones, be you will not.

Selah Sue (B)

I will not bother you with the girl's real name,the fact that she likes big hair or drinks white wine before her (often solo) gigs.
I believe she's been playing all over Europe for the past three years doing the big stages with just her acoustic guitar. Owww, how cute.
Don't be mistaken the girl can sing. I always felt her music needed a little backing, a little fleshing out in sound.
Seems she now sometimes uses a backing band something that's apparent on her debut release, the EP Raggamuffin.

Now the title song is the one that's been pushed the most and the hardest.
It's very good, has a nice groove and a smart lyric. Recognizable.

It's just that I'm afraid it will become the stone around her neck. The one hit wonder. The only song of hers everybody will remember.
Let's not let that happen because she has more to tell than just this one.
Only. On an EP there's only room for five songs.
The More That I is equally good. An atmosferic piece taken a little slower but with a faster chorus.
Break has only guitar and bass playing. Slow song, nothing out of the ordinary.
Crazy Vibes and On The Run should, and hopefully will, be part of the live set. They're just right.

I've been thinking that the Marketing machine behind the artist missed a couple of points.
This single should've been released last year and now would've been the right time to get a full CD out.

I for one will be eagerly anticipating that CD but it needs to be here fast.
I would not like to see this talent go to waste.


You're on the right path, Sanne!

Intro

I think I'll use this little corner of cyberspace to talk a bit about music.
Music I'm interested in, that is.
There is no good or bad music.
Some makes me sit up more and take notice. That is all.
The artists I'll talk about are those I can recommend. What you do with that recommendation is up to you.
I'm not going to waste time on music I don't care much for.