 Drew Young "Hide Out With Me"  Cowboy Mouth "Are You With Me?"  Michelle Malone "beneath the devil moon"  Meredith Brooks "Blurring The Edges" |
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Just a few hints:
Make sure to visit Jorie Gracen's
And, of course, one of the best sites on the Web, the award-winning, the ever-growing,
I did some checking of some of my links and some no longer worked. So, I deleted some. Too many, actually. I'll be trying to find new ones soon.
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Cowboy Mouth
Mary Lou Lord
The Reviews:
Hide Out With Me
The only drawback I have to the album, is the use of programmed drums exclusively. While this probably helped the recording sessions, because we all know how difficult drummers are to work with!! I'm only kidding there, but I look forward to hearing a live drummer on future releases. The songs work wonderfully well. The mix of the (old fashioned) acoustic guitars and the (new fangled) drum programming works amazingly well.
The songwriting is top notch. "Hungry For You", "Hide Out With Me", and "Cover Me" show off Drew's ability to articulate a tough situation. In fact, that's one of his songwriting's strong points. He doesn't touch on the topics that you hear on the radio everyday. While for some, this isn't a good idea, I happen to love it.
This cd is only available by mail order (as far as I know). But, if you have Meredith Brooks, Mary Lou Lord, Del Amitri, BoDeans, or Kevin Gilbert in your collections, you'll want to order this cd.
Are You With Me?
The songs are just on the wrong side of the mass appeal line. They're so close! "Jenny Says" has such a great hook! "How Do You Tell Someone" has something most everyone can relate to. "God Makes The Rain", "Love Of My Life" and "Laughable" are stand out songs as well. They all find a way into your brain and refuse to leave.
All the songs hit home on many different levels. Musically as well as lyrically. The lyrics are not so personal that you can't relate to them. And the music is accessible to fans of all genre's. It's not about being alternative, or pop, it's just a great solid beat, with singable songs.
In attempting to catagorize this band, I lean towards BoDeans and Del Amitri as standing next to Cowboy Mouth. There's also Toad The Wet Sprocket, but I'm not as familiar with their work to be able to add their name to the list.
I'm looking forward to hearing Cowboy Mouth live, and to hearing the next album!
Some Other Sucker's Parade
Everyone has their favorite ‘type’ of Del Amitri song. And everyone will be appeased during their initial listening of Some Other Suckers Parade. It has obvious singles, it has your old ‘live’ favorites, it has new favorites, it has straight ahead rock and roll, impassioned ballads, and songs to make you listen and fall in love with this band all over again.
The disc I’ve been blessed with hearing, has incredible harmonies. I know this is fashionable to say these days, but the harmonies are very reminiscent of The Beatles on Abbey Road. Iain’s lead guitar sounds somewhat subdued, he never really goes crazy like he can. I kept waiting for the soaring lead line during Medicine, but it didn’t come. Don’t get me wrong, Some Other Suckers Parade is still very much a ‘guitar album’. At the same time, Andy’s piano and organ work is featured more than it was on Twisted. As is Iain’s harmonica work!
Justin’s voice is in top notch form. He holds the high notes wonderfully, even when he slips into his falsetto, it still holds strong. If they choose to do these songs in concert, which they’ll have to, it might prove to be difficult knowing the physical demands of a Del Amitri tour.
My one regret is there is no big acoustic ballad. Like a Be My Downfall, or a Driving With The Brakes On. I, personally, thought that Drowned On Dry Land would be the big ballad, but apparently, it did not make the cut. That shortcoming is more than made up for in balls-to-the-wall rock and roll! They play it so well in concert, but tend to stay away from on record. Start With Me from Twisted is still one of my favorite Dels tracks for just that reason; they haven't done it on record very often.
The songs are all radio-friendly, and if Justin’s voice holds up, very performance friendly. And those of you who heard about them adding string arrangements to the album; forget your worries. The strings are very subdued, and you don’t notice them until the song’s almost over. I shared the same worries; and I like the string additions.
It’s a great album! Maybe not as deeply personal as Change Everything is; maybe not as honest as Twisted is; and maybe not as groovy as Waking Hours is. Some Other Suckers Parade stands on it’s own, creates it’s own category, it has its own energy. When trying to convert your friends to "Delmania", you will go to this album just as much as the others. Maybe, more. And, this is an album that is going to bring in a horde of new fans, without losing a single long-time fan.
It’s the new Del Amitri album. What more could you ask for.
And the amazing thing is, Meredith Brooks plays all the guitars. A gutsy move for a debut artist on their debut album. And it proves the point that guitar playing can and should be genderless. There’s nothing soft, nothing tender about her guitar playing. She kicks it up when the song asks for it, and backs it off when the point is taken. In my opinion, this album is about her guitar playing more than anything else. She’s out to prove that she can handle a Telecaster with the best of ‘em. And she can.
The songs almost take a step into the shadows of the guitars. That’s not to say the songs are uninteresting. They are interesting. The songwriting is solid the whole album through, but there is just something missing from the songs. And I’m afraid, I haven’t been able to put my finger on what that ingredient is.
The production sounds a touch “formula” for me, but I’m from the old school where variety on an album was a good thing. These days, if you have variety in the production, the album is deemed “directionless” or “wandering”. But, it’s also where you separate artists from followers. The comparison to Alanis Morrisette is an obvious and easy one. And is also unfair, but anybody in the music business knows that the music business is decidedly NOT fair.
"Blurring The Edges" is a good album. Fun to listen to, fun to root for. I look forward to the sophmore album from Meredith Brooks. That’s where she has to put her money where her mouth is. She’s had 10 years to write this material; what can she come up with for us, in say... the next year?
Michelle Malone brings out a rare album that just has her name on it. An album she did in 1990 with Drag The River first brought this singer/songwriter to my attention. Her voice is a little bit Bonnie Raitt, her songwriting a little bit Melissa Etheridge, and her production a little Black Crowes (that's not a bad thing).
This is real close to a really good album. There are moments where the production lose my attention by leaving passages where nothing holds your attention. This could be a part of the disappearing attention span, but it is a real phenomenen and must be dealt with. The other "problem" I have is the vocals are dead and compressed. The vocals always seem to sound exactly the same. Both in timbre and volume. Even during a loud chorus, power seems to be lost by not bringing the level of the vocal up. But, then, I'm not earning my living by making successful records, either!
Even with all that, I like this album. It's a great listen, the lyrics are wonderful, the production of the music varies which keeps it interesting. The Black Crowes comment is in the overall "southern feel" of the album. Which since it was recorded in Atlanta GA, that makes sense. It's too bad Michelle Malone is not on a larger lable, that can get her better promotion. A fall/winter tour has been cancelled due to emergency surgery.
For more information on Michelle and this album, go to her website listed in my "New Favorites" listing.
To order the Drew Young cd:
The price is $10 + $2 for shipping. (a bargain at twice the price!)
Drew Young/CS Music
2316 Esplanade Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70119
1-800-688-4212
