Kate Campbell – Moonpie Dreams

Theres no question Kate Camp_bell is proud of her roots. Shes a Southerner, and Moonpie Dreams plays like a veritable tour guide through Southern Americana: Galaxie 500 cars, drawls so thick cement is spelled sea-mint, the tourist trap Ruby Falls, wrought iron fences. The kudzu practically falls out of the CD booklet.

That said, its not enough to base an album on details, and Moon__pie Dreams falters for too much study and formula. The Muscle Shoals rave-up opener When Panthers Roamed In Arkansas is anchored by the great Spooner Oldhams organ playing, but neither Campbells thin voice or downright bizarre lyrics can hold up to the soulful instrumentation. While See Rock City and the title track are poignant character sketches, Bascoms Blues and Delmus Jackson seem sort of pedestrian, as if her formula for making a mood by piecing together lots of visual images let her down. Not that she should throw out her technique its just that the results this time arent as good as she thinks they are.