• Album Review Roundup: Band of Heathens, Sons of Bill, Gabriel Sullivan, The Pines, and Pieta Brown

    Truersound Posted On November 24, 2009
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    This was originally posted at A Truer Sound, go there is you want to hear samples.

    First let me say that in all honesty I don’t like doing album reviews. I prefer to let the music speak for itself which is why I do the seasonal samplers. But, saying that, the reviews do get a lot of continuing hits from people doing searches and the like, so I like to think they serve their own purpose of turning folks onto music they might like. So with that said I have A LOT of albums I need to review….but like I said, I don’t like doing it so I let them stack up. Here is my compromise, a post of shorter album reviews all in one post. Kind of like how magazines used to do their quick reviews. All right, so with the boring information out of the way, let’s do this.

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    Band of Heathens – One Foot In The Ether

    Sounds like the Black Crowes and Little Feat got together and decided to jam. These guys are great musicians in the pentatonic classic rock style. The album kicks off with L.A. County blues which is one of the best odes to Hunter Thompson I believe I’ve ever heard. Standout tracks include the bluesy Golden Calf, the soulful country of What’s This World, the “she talks to angels” type ballad, Let Your Heart Not Be Troubled, the little feat-ish funk of Somebody Tell The Truth, and an amazing cover of Gillian Welch’s Look At Miss Ohio.
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    Sons of Bill – One Town Away
    Well here is a review that is long overdue, and truthfully I’m glad I waited. Why, well because at first I liked the album but thought it to be too slick sounding. I still think it’s a little slick sounding, but I quickly got over that after repeated listens. What I call “slick” others would call “well produced”. The thing that immediately grabbed me about this album were the well crafted lyrics and melodies. Particularly the line in Broken Bottles “Hank Williams might have been a lovesick drinker, but being a lovesick drunk don’t make you Hank”. Lyricism such as that is all over this thing, and as I alluded to in the opening sentences, this album is a grower for me. Sons of Bill are recommended if you like Reckless Kelly and Scott Miller.
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    Gabriel Sullivan – By The Dirt

    Here is another one I’m glad I waited to review. I will admit at first I was a little underwhelmed with this one. However last week this album popped up on an MP3 disc in my truck and damn it hit me hard at just the right time. This is a great album though a little off the beaten path. The blurb sheet that came with this album said something like “sounds like Tom Waits fronting The Black Keys” and I would say that is a very apt description. I would also like to compare him to a less rustic, slightly jazzier William Elliot Whitmore. Little bit of a New Orleans thing going on here with the clarinet and song structures…but it works out good with Gabe’s weathered voice. The absolute highlight of this album is without a doubt the duet with Brittany Dawn House Built On Love. Check out Gabe Sullivan’s blog here.

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    The Pines – Tremolo Man this album is fantastic. Full of bluesy folky goodness and some of the finest yet most subtle slide guitar ever laid to wax. The Pines are one part songwriter David Huckfelt, and one part songwriter Benson Ramsey, who is the son of Greg Brown sideman and producer Bo Ramsey (who also produced this album). I’m guessing that’s where he gets his killer guitar chops. This is their second album, and shows a band that has matured quite a bit since their debut album. While that album was a good listen, I would call this album a MUST listen. Great songwriting, great playing, great production, just an all around great album. I tell you what it kind of reminds me of…..if Gurf Morlix had produced a mid 70’s Bob Dylan album.

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    Pieta Brown – Shimmer

    Speaking of Greg Brown, longtime readers to ATS should be familiar with his daughter Pieta. This album is a 7-song EP (the second EP in two years) and it’s mainly focusing on Pieta’s folkier side. I will say this EP is a little more laid back than 2007’s Remember The Sun which was one of my favorite albums of that year. But put this album side by side with last year’s Flight Time EP and it makes perfect sense, as that album was full of her faster more rocking songs. I would recommend both of these EP’s really, though I’m more of a fan of the Flight Time EP, I just think Pieta is best when she adds in a little electric guitar and up’s the sultry twang thing. In my opinion the strongest song on here is Lovin’ You Still which sounds like a reworking of In My Mind I Was Talking To Loretta off Remember The Sun.
    Ok, guess I will stop there.



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