Here are ten hot new tracks from Calgary’s Favorite sons, the Kirby Sewell Band, released September 2014, that fuse southern blues rock with singer-songwriter sentimentality, all designed to showcase the powerhouse soul-shaking vocals of front man Kirby Sewell. Some instant favorites include the hard-swinging opening track, “Devils In The Details,” and title tune “Girl With A New Tattoo,” a smart-ass ode to the inked-up feminine form. The funky “Stop And Go” showcases some blazing slide guitar from Morgan Turk. And the revved-up boogie tune “$1.11” celebrates hard times and features ’70s-style harmonic unison guitar runs and a finger-popping solo from bassist Jae Cho.
The real strength of the band is how the two guitarists, Neil Gunhold and Morgan Turk, complement each other. It’s exemplified in the jumpin’ shuffle “Kiss You Tonight,” as they are hard-panned left and right in the mix, each playing counterpoint lead and rhythm parts over a crisp groove.The foot-stompin’ dueling acoustic guitar sing-along “Til the River Starts to Overflow” closes the album with sweet old-timey fun.
Rick J Bowen
