Review: Aaron Allen - A Place Called Hell

Aaron Allen - A Place Called Hell
2009, Aaron Allen

Chatham, Ontario, Canada's Aaron Allen wears big shoes quietly. His second album, Aaron Allen & The Small City Saints was on CHRW's Top 100 albums list for 2008, with chart appearances in cities such as Guelph, London, Quebec, Windsor and Calgary. He writes for late night talk show J.R. Diggs' Man With A Van, and has developed a reputation for powerful and introspective songwriting. Allen's third album, A Place Called Hell is a family affair, with brother Myles on drums and wife Aimee on harmonies, piano, organ and bass. Influences such as Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams and Neil Young color Allen's songwriting, which is rich in tapestry and deep in content.

A Place Called Hell opens with No One Knows, a plodding bit of Emo/Shoegaze/Americana that is a difficult listen. A Placed Called Hell is a straight-forward bit of Americana about hitting bottom and being totally aware to the extent of attempting to come to terms with it. It's a stark and resigned song that's almost too calm. Anyone is something of a quasi-peppy pity party set to music. Backbone hits on a down and dirty blues riff for a song about carnal pleasure as an escape from the dregs. You won't be able to sit/stand still while this one is playing. Allen goes for the acoustic side on New Blues, a song that contends that things never work out and the whole thing (life) is rigged.

Moving On is a classic bit of acoustic/electric blues. The lyrics don't matter on this one, you'll just be glad you listened. Oh My Lord takes the blues on a more Rock angle, halfway between Led Zeppelin and Cream. This is by far the best tune on the disc up to this point. Run is a gorgeous piece of self-loathing. The guitar accompaniment is soothing and calm while the lyrics are the pulpy aftermath of a beaten psyche. Dark and light intermingle here for a work of beauty that's as uplifting as it is depressing. A Song For Her is a musical eulogy of sorts; A Place Called Hell was written in the wake up Allen's mother's death. Taken from that perspective the entire album is about healing; or not as the case may be. A Song For Her is full of love; written from an emotionally constricted place that anyone who's ever lost someone dear will recognize. You'll also want to check out I Woke Up Today and You And Me.

A Place Called Hell is an album that leaves me conflicted as a listener and critic. I want to like it in part because of what it represents, and in many instances I do, but there are times when the feel of album, in spite of the back story, is more about holding on to pain than healing. This may have simply reflect where Allen was emotionally in the crafting of this disc, yet without the back story (and maybe even with it), I could see some listeners drawing the conclusion that A Place Called Hell is largely self-indulgent in perpetuating suffering rather than healing. Allen is a decent songwriter, who rises above on occasion, and there are some great turns here, but the overall feel of the record is not one that is likely to draw a lot of fans outside of the Robert Smith worshippers (and yea, there are many). It's a decent, dark effort; I'll look forward to seeing where Allen goes next.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Aaron Allen at www.myspace.com/aaronallenmusic. You can stream the tracks from A Place Called Hell on Allen’s MySpace page. No word yet on a release date, but Allen’s first CD can be purchase directly through his MySpace page.

Review: Foster McGinty - Peach Red

Foster McGinty - Peach Red
2009, Foster McGinty

Foster McGinty's roots are deep in the Missouri soil of Cape Girardeau, but he's a New York City boy these days with the Rock N Roll swagger to match. Deeply introspective as a lyricist, McGinty brings a guitar style that's been compared to the theoretical love child of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton's Cream. McGinty has established himself in the New York music scene with headline performances at Kenny's Castaways and The Bitter End, but has traveled all over the US en route to where he stands. With Peach Red, McGinty establishes himself as something fans have known him to be all along, a rock star.

Indeed, McGinty embraces the same fusion of Rock and Blues that drove folks like Hendrix, Cream and even Led Zeppelin to stardom. Opening with Can’t Help But Shine, McGinty even shows elements of Funk in his Blues/Rock mix. The guitar work throughout the album is excellent. 10 Moons sounds like it was heavily influenced by Hendrix and is the sort of song that a classic rock cover band would latch on to with relish. McGinty gets into a more hard-nosed, Southern Rock sound on Dream Catcher, perhaps the best written track on the disc, but the aural highlight is Burning Bee Hive. The Hammond Organ and bass guitar steal the show on this one, mixing it up below the guitar line to create some wonderful musical and rhythmic wizardry. You’ll also want to check out Turqoise, Circus Mind and My Time Of Uncertainty.

Foster McGinty plays like a rock star. His guitar chops are unquestionable. The songwriting here is a bit uneven at times, but no duds can be found among the ten tracks presented here. Peach Red is a fun introduction to a man who remembers, or at least has recaptured, what it was like to play Rock N Roll in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Foster McGinty offers us a bit of musical history on Peach Red; updated for today, but none the worse for wear.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Foster McGinty at http://www.fostermcginty.com/ or www.myspace.com/fostermcginty. You can purchase a copy of Peach Red at www.cdbaby.com/cd/fostermcginty2.

Review: Rhett May - Calcutta Boy

Rhett May - Calcutta Boy
2008, Rhett May Music

Music's Prodigal Son, Rhett May, has come home. After three decades climbing Jacob's Ladder in the corporate world, this Calcutta, India born, Australian based rocker has returned to music. Formerly of the Flint Stones, one of India's most popular pop groups at the time (and catching the eyes/ears of George Harrison and Apple Records), May followed as part of a series of popular Australian Garage bands (Oz, Shakespeare Sarani, Prodigy and Lucifer). Influenced by Carnatic and Hindustani musical traditions as well as the pop music of the time (The Monkees, Cream, Hendrix, Ricky Nelson), May developed a musical style that was all his own. Now, with longtime collaborator James Payne, May returns to the music scene with the four song E.P. Calcutta Boy.

Calcutta Boy opens with There's A Little White Powder, a song that tackles cocaine addiction. The song has a strong pop feel to it and sounds like something that might have come out of England in the early 1990's. Lyrically the song is a bit awkward at times, but there's a definite quality to it that would play well in a dance club. African Queen has a unique sound, opening with some unusual harmonies and a standard yet catchy dance beat. The vocals are mixed too low here, being swallowed up by the electronic instrumentation. Have Your Arms Been Missing Me suffers from a similar problem. The vocals are essentially buried under the music. The musical arrangement is pleasant and somewhat catchy but is also fluff, to speak plainly. Mirror Mirror is the most musically interesting piece on Calcutta Boy, but the mix here again undervalues the vocals. The Calypso arrangement is fun and carries the song for the most part, but doesn't entirely save the song from itself.

Rhett May has a definite pop sensibility in the music he writes. His melodic creations are generally interesting and catchy. Lyrically he's awkward at times. The real problem with Calcutta Boy is the mixing. Vocals are buried within or underneath instrumental parts, making it very difficult at times to really get what May is singing. At the end of the day Calcutta Boy is an interesting listen, but probably not a regular one.

Rating: 2.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Rhett May at http://www.rhettmay.net/. You can purchase a copy of Calcutta Boy at www.cdbaby.com/cd/rhettmay2.