The New Iberians - Bon Temps Rouge

The New Iberians – Bon Temps Rouge
2008, Psych-Delta Records

When you think of zydeco music you think of New Orleans.  Bourbon Street, the Quarter and the roots of Dixieland are all wrapped up the zeitgeist of music, which is a musical patois that could be born nowhere else.  So finding the New Iberians practicing their wares from the home base in Oregon might surprise you.  The New Iberians formed from the detritus of 1990’s zydeco act Mumbo Gumbo.  The band’s sophomore album, Bon Temps Rouge, was named from a rant by an overly spirited MC who mis-pronounced Bons Temps Rouler (Let The Good Times Roll), but there’s nothing accidental about the music.

Bon Temps Rouge opens with a feisty cover of Fats Domino’s “My Girl Josephine” that mixes Zydeco and blues.  This is a high energy tune with Claes Almroth making an absolutely wonderful spectacle of himself on harmonica.  Evan Shlaes has a pleasant, down-home voice that works perfectly in this setting.  “Goin’ To The Levee” is a Dave Edmunds-inspired rock number that makes the most of Evan Shlaes piano work.  “Bon Temps Rouge” is a catchy zydeco number featuring a fun night on the town with a scheming gal that doesn’t end the way the story-teller might have hoped.  This is a classic tale that’s fun and highly danceable.

“Black Snake Blues” is a Clifton Chenier tune that sees Claes Almroth stepping up to the mic for a solid lead vocal surrounded by some dazzling vocal harmonies.  “Terry Anne” sees Evan Shlaes back on vocals in a tune that pays homage to the culinary arts and their role in love.  The musical blend here is rich, mixing early rock n roll, R&B and zydeco in an almost magical mix you have to hear to believe.  “Rock Island Line” is a catchy and fun Leadbelly cover that stays true to the original while offering a richly stylistic interpretation.  “Voulez-Vous Dancer?” (Do you want to dance?) is a Cajun take on the Bobby Freeman tune that’s a great deal of fun; a low-key but danceable interpretation with layered instrumentation.

“The Belmont Waltz” works in a bowed saw solo that is a treat, but is presented here as an almost comical musical work, ala Spike Jones.  Originally a ragtime piece, The New Iberians have taken this one to the woodshed and made something magical in the process.   “Voodoo Juice” is a bit of Texas two-step, ala ZZ Top, done with Zydeco instrumentation.  This tune is so out of the box that it will grab you by the collar and drag you along for the ride.  Once the novelty wears off, however, you’ll be amazed at the virtuosity of the group on this number.  “Hot Dog Stand” (Buck Owens) is an entertaining set-up for the finale, a jitterbug number that threatens to rip the roof off the album.  The New Iberians wrap things up with a zydeco take on “I Can See Clearly Now” (Johnny Nash).  This is a solid cover, but perhaps the last two tracks should have been reversed in order, as “I Can See Clearly Now” is something of a letdown after “Hot Dog Stand”.

The New Iberians put in a solid effort on Bon Temps Rouge.  The blend of blues, rock and zydeco is novel, but in and of itself is quickly assimilated in the mind.  What makes The New Iberians intriguing is the level of musicianship apparent on Bon Temps Rouge.  You get the impression that this band could walk into any club, anywhere, of most any style, and be welcome on stage.  Bon Temps Rouge is worth spending some time on, but it’s really just an appetizer for a live show should you be lucky enough to attend one.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about The New Iberians at www.newiberians.com.  Bon Temps Rouge is available from Amazon.com as a CD or Download.  The album is also available via iTunes.

Review: Guitardogs - Dog Years

Guitardogs - Dog Years
2007, House Sound Records

Kintnersville, Pennsylvania’s Guitardogs hit the road in 2007 with one of the most exciting guitar-based classic rock albums of that year, Dog Years. Whether it's Blues, Rock, Country of even 1970's psychedelia, Guitardogs laid it all on the line. The guitar work is definitely the thing here. Songwriting otherwise is fair to average, and the vocals are sufficient throughout. Whether prosecuting Billy Gibbons style Texas Blues/Rock riffs (Long Goodbyes, All She Wrote, One Of Those Days, Paradise); Classic and Prog Rock (Anthem, Red Beans And Rice), lyric ballads (Foolish Pride, You Should Know By Now) or Floydian musical subversion (Suicide on 611), Guitardogs will have all the axe men and ladies out there reaching for their instrument and trying to catch on. The technical aspects of the album are brilliant, and Dog Years harkens back to a time when Rock N Roll was still King, and the guitar was his majesty's mighty scepter.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Guitardogs at http://www.theguitardogs.com/ or www.myspace.com/guitardogs. You can download Dog Years from either Amazon.com or iTunes. Hard copies may still be available directly from the band.

Review: Kris Heaton Blues Band - R-Me Strong

Kris Heaton Blues Band - R-Me Strong
2009, Kris Heaton Blues Band

Connecticut's Kris Heaton has been in and out of the music scene for a number of years, taking a break to raise his family but coming home to the stage in 2002. Since then he's been a wild ride in Southern New England, playing to packed houses and opening for acts such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Greg Allman, Huey Lewis and the News and Leon Russell. Heaton recently released his third album with the Kris Heaton Blue Band, R-Me Strong. Full of aggressive play, humor and pointed commentary, R-Me Strong is a fun listen full of Rock N Roll attitude.

R-Me Strong opens with Sugar, a testosterone-laden ode to a woman set to a Rhythm-n-Blues arrangement that is guaranteed to get your feet moving. Heaton has a voice that's perfect for the style of Blues/Rock he purveys, and the guitar work is hot. I'm Your Man is entertaining and fairly typical of the genre (the verses sound nearly identical to George Thorogood's Bad To The Bone). R-Me Strong is a tribute to all of those who serve in the US Armed Forces. R-Me Strong uses the call-and-response cadence common in old Blues tunes and military outfits in an arrangement that smacks of AC/DC. Shut Up is the most humorous song on the album, taking off after gossips with brutal alacrity.

And She Said is a joyous bit of innuendo where the guitar and harmonica get most of the good parts and generally rip up the dance floor. This tune is highly catchy; full of innuendo and intention. On Weatherman, Heaton takes on that guy who's so full of his ability to attract women he begins to think of himself as god-like. Heaton cuts him down to size to guitar work vaguely reminiscent of ZZ Top. Kris Heaton Blues Band almost seems to get a bit complacent thereafter, as the energy level generally falls for a while. Loser tries to recover the ship with a high energy level tightly twined into a mellow, melancholy performance. Heaton treats listeners to a wonderful live version of Long Time Ago. The sound quality of the recording itself is fine, although the song isn't mastered at anywhere near the same level as the rest of the album. Heaton closes out with When Men Cry, a song that underscores what's in your heart over what you do, what you make, etc. It's a pleasant ballad; a definite change of pace for Heaton.

R-Me Strong is a great way to get to know the Kris Heaton Blues Band if you don't know them already. Not every song works as well as the rest, but Heaton has high expectation and his band delivers. R-Me Strong deserves some attention.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about the Kris Heaton Blues Band at http://www.krisheatonbluesband.com/ or www.myspace.com/krisheatonbluesband. You can purchase R-Me Strong as either a CD or Download from CDBaby.com.

Review: Truckers Tracks Vol. 2: Hard Times

Truckers Tracks Vol. 2: Hard Times
2009, Straight Up Sound

Straight Up Sound returns with their second compilation dedicated to the Kings and Queens of the road. Truckers Tracks Vol. 2: Hard Times picks up where Vol. 1 left off, moving more heavily into Blues/Rock territory. Johnny Neel returns for the second collection, along with artists Russell Gulley, Joe Tackett, Adam Jones, Chris Anderson and The Levees, among others.

Hard Times opens with The Levees on Hard Times, a grinding Southern Rock number with roots in The Blues. Its ZZ Top meets Stevie Ray Vaughan in three-and-a-half minutes of danceable rock you're sure to enjoy. Johnny Neel brings his backwoods bombast on Long Haul, a gritty truck-driving anthem that sounds like Joe Walsh is sitting in on guitar. Russell Gulley kicks in an inspired performance on Greenwood Mississippi, stripping things down to himself, an acoustic guitar and harmonica. There's real poetry in this song, and the rustic arrangement is a perfect fit. Joe Tackett goes Honky-Tonk on Lucky In Kentucky, a gentle warning about the dangers of canoodling in the Bluegrass State.

Johnny Neel returns on the soulful Love To Burn, sounding a bit like RL Burnside with a gospel choir and a Blues flavored jam you won't forget. Doodle is pure Rhythm N Blues and my personal favorite on the disc. Adam Jones has himself a winner in this track certain to be a concert favorite. Chris Anderson shows off some wonderful blues guitar chops on Driving Out Of The Blues, although the song itself wasn't particularly memorable. Russell Gulley re-appears with Peace Of Good Earth, another acoustic and sparsely arranged song that is pure old South. Hard Times closes with Darius Radd on the bland Angels Coming Home. It's a decent enough song but not really a fitting coda for what's come before.

Truckers Tracks Vol. 2: Hard Times stays well with the intent of the Truckers Tracks compilations without sounding derivative. In fact, there's heavier blues-flavored material here than on Volume 1. Highlights are Russell Gulley (in general) and Joe Tackett's Lucky In Kentucky. Johnny Neel delivers strong performances as expected and Adam Jones shines bright. The sudden switch in flavor for the last track doesn't kill the album, but certainly isn't a great way to close off what is, up until then, a highly dynamic and energetic album. Overall it's a positive experience.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

To learn more about the Truckers Tracks compilations and the artists involved, visit http://www.truckerstracks.com/. You can also check out our review of Trucker Tracks (Vol. 1) here. You can order Truckers Tracks Vol. 2: Hard Times as either a CD or download through CDBaby.com.

Review: 8 Ball Aitken - Rebel With A Cause

8 Ball Aitken - Rebel With A Cause
2009, Phoenix Movement Records

Sometimes the music we grew up with (individually or as a culture) is harder to hear, so wave of international artists finding success with American Roots music is no surprise. Along comes Queensland, Australia's 8 Ball Aitken, a banana picker turned guitar picker who appears to be channeling the very soul of Country, Blues and Roots music as it grew out of the Southern United States. 8 Ball Aitken's debut album, Rebel With A Cause has generated two top-10 Country singles in his native Australia and won him a 2008 EMI Music Blues & Roots Song Of The Year Award for Yellow Moon. Aitken has played dates in the UK, Singapore and North America, recently putting in a stellar performance at Canadian Music Week. It's only a matter of time before North American audiences catch on to 8 Ball Aitken.

Rebel With A Cause opens with Cyclone Country, a bluesy Southern Rocker with some serious honky-tonk in its lineage. Aitken has a wonderfully smooth and lyric rock voice that contrasts nicely with the heavily country-influenced Rock N Roll. Cyclone Country is built on a killer lick that would make ZZ Top beam with pride and a chorus you can't help but sing/hum along to. Cowboy Movie is all about taking a stand for what you know to be right regardless of the consequences. The allegory is poetic if unexpected and the melody is pure honey. The Party has a vague Dire Straits-does-Country feel to it; this is a tune that's sure to be a favorite live and will get your hips swaying even if you're not inclined to dance.

Hands On Top Of The Wheel is a straight-forward Country Rocker ala The Eagles, (complete with a sound-alike vocal). This is probably the song on the disc with the biggest commercial potential, particularly for licensing. Aitken incorporates some deliciously dirty slide guitar work on Black Swamp Creek, although lyrically the song is a bit cliché. Outback Booty Call is an amusing Southern Rock tune with clear intentions and a bit of a twist at the end. This should be another concert favorite and I could picture this ending up on a movie soundtrack somewhere. Yellow Moon features a driving bass line and great Southern Rock n Blues sound, Texas style. The track is memorable and will keep you moving. Guitar Man sounds like it should be a classic Rock staple, but it's an Aitken original. There's a feel here that's very similar to John Fogerty, and the song itself will have you scratching your head wondering where you've heard it before. Rocky Road is an upbeat, catchy southern Rocker that leads into The Other Side, which goes back a few decades for a classic sound that is refreshing.

Rebel With A Cause is one of those albums you simply can't ignore. Even with the occasional flaw it has to be in the discussion of top Roots Music efforts for the year thus far. Aitken's voice is so fluid and his delivery so down-home that he puts you immediately at ease. The musicianship on Rebel With A Cause is world class, and the songwriting is more legitimate and more original than much of the roots material you're likely to hear. 8 Ball Aitken has a real winner on his hands here.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about 8 Ball Aitken at http://www.8ballaitken.com/ or www.myspace.com/8ballaitken. You can purchase a copy of Rebel With A Cause at CDBaby.com.

Review: Julia Crowe - Smoke & Steel

Julia Crowe - Smoke & Steel
2009, Seiskor

Chicago native and current New Yorker Julia Crowe is not your typical guitar goddess. Classically trained, Crowe brings fingerstyle to electric blues, electronica, rock and any other musical tale that happens to cross her path. Crowe is acknowledged as one of the most original and unique guitar players in the world, honored with the American Composer's Forum Encore Grant. Crowe also has written articles for Classical Guitar Magazine, Acoustic Guitar Magazine, Guitar Player, FRETS, Mel Bay's Guitarsessions, Down Beat and Soundboard. Crowe shows her true colors on Smoke & Steel, her outstanding new album. Each track was recorded in one take with no overdubbing. None was needed.

Crowe steps off with the title track, Smoke & Steel, mining a variegated blues riff as inspiration for a bit of musical day-dreaming. Smoke & Steel has a distinct freestyle aesthetic that's more like eavesdropping on Crowe's thoughts than a structured composition. Rotten Tomatoes & Cheap Socks delivers on the back of some shred-worthy pick work that plays like a tempest in a teapot. The blues influence in Crowe's guitar work is very clearly felt here although there is a sense that the work is so inward focused it might border on inaccessible to all but the most intense of guitar noodlers. Black Feathers gets into some heavy hammer work with ethereal effects thrown in for an Eddie Van Halen meets Bill Laswell feel that's as intriguing and at least as bizarre as that might sound.

Ace's Four Vagabonds leans a bit toward rock structure at times, but stays firmly in the noodle column while exploring themes that evaporate the instant they're uttered. Enniscorthy has a vaguely Michael Hedges feel about it, played in an almost acoustic-ambient fashion that borders on the sort of material Windham Hill became famous for. Red Tug is blues/rock riff gone wild that sounds like it might have originated from a band like ZZ Top at their most down & dirty. The guitar work of Crowe is outstanding. Leaves finds Crowe in a more contemplative place, with subtle progressions and quiet moments interspersed between moments of angst and ambivalence. Sid's Swagger is an occasionally halting bit of free-form improv that fails to make a significant impact on the listener, although to be certain Crowe is technically very precise. Roses Of Crimson Fire will keep the listener very busy sorting through the maze of sounds but fails to offer anything significant to the musical monologue built by Crowe; much the same can be said for Tennessee Turk and Pewter Sky, the closing tracks.

Julia Crowe is technically proficient throughout Smoke & Steel, but ultimately the experience is like listening to someone noodle on guitar for the better part of an hour. There's little structure and little sense of where any particular piece might go. Crowe recorded this album all on her own with no other musicians; the result is an album where self-indulgence has bloomed un-checked in the writing/recording process. No boundaries and no structure can be a powerful tool in the hands of a genius. Julia Crowe has great chops on the guitar, but the creative aspect is sorely lacking on Smoke & Steel. Other musicians; perhaps even someone else to write and build song structure with would bring out the best in Julia Crowe. The accessibility here is small.

Rating: 2 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Julia Crowe at http://www.juliacrowe.com/, www.myspace.com/juliacrowe or www.myspace.com/smokesteeljuliacrowe. You can purchase Smoke & Steel at www.cdbaby.com/crowejulia.

Review: Ashley Pond Band - The Warning

Ashley Pond Band - The Warning
2009, Ashley Pond Band

Malone, New York (pop. 5,793) is a small town in the Adirondack Mountains that's a great destination for hikers, but not necessarily known as a hotbed of musical creation. Enter Ashley Pond, a native of Malone who moved to Albany, NY as a first step in pursuing a career in music. In 2007 she released a solo album entitled Dala, which was declared one of the top 10 Local Albums of the year by Metroland Magazine, whose readers also declared Pond the "Best New Solo Artist" in the 2007 "Best Of" edition. Joined by bassist Sarah Clark and drummer Scott Smith for live shows, the trio quickly grew into The Ashley Pond Band and began working on new material that Pond was constantly producing. The band saved up the money made from gigs to finance their latest album, The Warning, released in June of 2009. With the late addition of guitarist Eric Halder, it's clear that both Ashley Pond and the band are continuing to grow into their musical destinies.

The Warning opens with No More West To Be Won, a sultry blues tune with an understated arrangement. Pond takes full advantage with a voice full nearly to bursting with emotion and texture. Its Norah Jones meets Michelle Malone. Up next is The Warning; Texas Blues ala ZZ Top that's not over the top but full of powerful undercurrents. The sound here is very distinctive, as Pond is a bit atypical in approach both in vocals and on guitar, but the overall effect is quite good early in the disc. Wolf Man is music noir with vaguely twisted sensuality. Readers familiar with Sarah Slean have an idea of what they'll hear here.

As happens with young bands sometimes, The Warning hits a point about four songs in where the really original stuff has been done, and the band settles in to a series of decent but relatively non-descript tunes. Songs like There You Are, Breaking Day, Current Race and Meet Me are good, but just not quite up to the level of the first three. Born On A Full Moon and A Blue House fall into the trap of plodding songs that take too long to get where they're going to maintain listener interest, but each show signs of life in the melody or instrumentation. Ashley Pond Band comes back to life a bit at the end with the gut-wrenching melancholy of The Dirt. It's a bit off the beaten track but a great listen. The Warning closes out with The River; I'll leave it to readers to check out but it may be the best writing on the disc.

Ashley Pond Band gives an uneven but promising performance on The Warning. The high points are noteworthy and ultimately listenable, making the more "average" material seem a bit lackluster by comparison. Pond is a prodigious writer and may be a victim of quality over quantity here; although I suspect that some of these songs might play better live than on CD. In any event, when Ashley Pond Band gets it right you want to be there listening. There's a great deal of potential here.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about the Ashley Pond Band at www.myspace.com/ashleypond. You can purchase The Warning on CD from www.cdbaby.com/cd/ashleypond.