Royal Headache - High

My God this is a good music!

I was tempted to have that simple declaration stand as my review, but as a lawyer I am bound by a secret and sacred oath to never let seven words tell the story when I can use many dozen.  And that is fine, because High deserves the time to needed to provide more detailed praise.  If lightning strikes and the pop music world momentarily becomes fair and just, this album will provide Royal Headache with fame and fortune.  While we all suspect that won't happen, you can all do your part and get yourself a copy.  It still won't make the band rich, but the intangible rewards to you will last a long time.

Musically, the band builds on its unique indie rock sound from their debut - punk fury with vocals that bear evidence of both the straining shout of punk and the emotional and sonic range of Memphis soul - by dialing back both the pace and the volume for a few songs.  But make no mistake, while Royal Headache trades in songs with a pop core, the performances are taut, urgent and full-blooded.  Thematically, the album deals with love and relationships.  And it deals with those topics will clear-eyed appreciation for the lust, longing, sadness, uncertainties, fulfillment, and loss that are part of the package.  Supposedly, frontman Shogun has said that the songs are about someone he no longer sees, which adds yet another tone to the emotional charge of the set.

The album begins with the the high voltage "My Own Fantasy".  And if that song about the hollowness of the rock sex-god lifestyle was the only song on the album, followed by twenty minutes of Shogun saying "check" into the mic, I'd still recommend it.  But the truth is that it isn't the best song on the album by a long shot.  In fact, it is rivaled by the urgent plea of the following "Need You", and lapped by the showcase love anthem and title track (stream below).  The chugging "Another World" continues the frenetic pace.

The fifth song, "Wouldn't You Know" provides the album's biggest change of pace.  The mid-tempo arrangement begins with a dusty spaghetti western feel and evolves with cinematic scope while discussing the uncertainty in making a commitment.  But the throbbing and biting "Garbage" brings the volume and fury back to previous levels.  "Love Her If I Tried" is a wonderful dose of garage soul about a failed attempt at a relationship.  Track 8 is "Caroline" (video below).  I love "Caroline" -- it is one of my three favorite songs on the albums and is a pure dose of feel good rock.  "Little Star" is the rebirth of the Buzzcocks (and we could all use some Buzzcocks in our life).  "Electric Shock" is the perfect closing track:  90 seconds of punk aggression and wry commentary.  Lights up, everyone leave the area with their bodies vibrating.

If you are still reading this review rather than playing the clips and buying the album, I have failed a bit here.  I'm going to go drown my sorrows, but before I go, I again urge you to get High.







Royal Headache is Shogun (vocals), Shortty (drums), Law (guitar) and Joe (bass).  High is out now via What's Your Rupture in vinyl, CD and digital formats in most of the world, and on the band's own Distant and Vague label in Australia.  The band currently is touring in North America; the remaining dates are provided below.

Website
Facebook
What's Your Rupture site for US purchases
Rough Trade site for UK purchases

REMAINIMG ROYAL HEADACHE TOUR DATES:
Wed. Aug. 19 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle 
Thu. Aug. 20 – Detroit, MI @ UFO 
Fri. Aug. 21 – Toronto, ON @ Silver Dollar
Sat. Aug. 22 – Montreal, QC @ La Vitrola
Mon. Aug. 24 – Boston, MA @ The Great Scott 
Tue. Aug. 25 – Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade 
Thu. Aug. 27 – Baltimore, MD @ Windup Space 
Fri. Aug. 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA 
Sat. Aug. 29 – Brooklyn, NY @ Palisades 

Update: Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas

Quick update:
USA Today posted an audio of "Sorry I Stole Your Man" from Secret Evil, a song we highlighted in our recent review.
Great song, well worth a listen. See the updated review here with link to the new audio.
Simple fact here: More available Jessica Hernandez music is better.
Pre-Order that CD and thank me later.

Review: Jessica Hernandez and The Deltas "Secret Evil"

We've been all in for Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas for some time, featuring them here at WYMA a few times, from as early as June 2013. So it's an understatement to say we've been looking forward to their first full length LP, Secret Evil, to be released on August 19.

Let's cut to the chase - Jessica Hernandez is a star waiting to happen. She's a powerhouse performer, blessed with a memorable and strong voice, and charisma to burn. And the Detroit native is backed by a crack outfit who do the rock and soul traditions of that music mecca proud, yet take it in their own new direction, influenced by not only Detroit's rich musical heritage but by rockabilly, ska, and Hernandez' Mexican-Cuban-American roots, having grown up in an inner SW Detroit neighborhood known as "Mexicantown". Her family owns a popular restaurant and a bakery there. This young Detroiter embodies the new Detroit resurgence - artistic, edgy, street smart, socially conscious.

Secret Evil is a big step up for this young band compared to their early recordings. It's well produced by Argentinian Milo Froideval (won a Latin Grammy for Best Alternative Album for Ely Guerra’s Hombre Invisible), and aided by the radio-friendly mixing of veteran hit maker Richard Gottehrer, owner of Instant Records, the label releasing Secret Evil. Gottehrer produced, among many noteworthy things, the Blondie hits, and there's a similar big city toughness yet accessibility here. The use of horns throughout this CD, which the band employs live as well, is outstanding, makes the songs jump, with a nod to the great Stevie Wonder 1970's hits.

Let's start with "Caught Up", a garage-surf rocker that perviously appeared on the band's Demons EP, with a very winning video here:

"Sorry I Stole Your Man" has a similar avant-garage feel, with a hint of Latin jazz and some fantastic background vocals honoring the band's Motown lineage -- love the girl group sound in the fade out -- though sorry to say there's no audio or video available for that one yet that I can link.  That song has become a highlight of the band's live performances. Aug 5 update: USA Today posted an exclusive audio of the song right here: usatoday.com/jessica-hernandez.

Here's a link to the audio of opening track "No Place left To Hide", maybe the most pure rock song on the record:


"Tired Oak", one of the songs on Secret Evil that seems ready for commercial radio:


Hernandez' range as both a singer and artist is best reflected in a ballad here, "Cry Cry Cry" (an original song, not the Johnny Cash classic), just a beautiful vocal where she puts her big rockabilly belt-it-out gear on pause, and instead shows off her softer and higher register. Recorded version not yet available for public consumption, but here's an audio of a fine live version:
https://soundcloud.com/michigan-radio/jessica-hernandez-the-deltas

The hit here in my view, and hey aren't we all frustrated A&R geeks, is "Dead Brains", a hybrid of Detroit soul, ska, and modern dance rock, with a killer chorus. If the band catches just a little break it wouldn't surprise me to see 80,000 kids at the next Bonaroo or Coachella festival jumping up and down and singing "Your brain's gone dead, you feel no power, where's your head?" Here's an earlier version of "Dead Brains" live, acoustic, super stripped down. Pop quiz: Is there anything more Detroit than piling into a Lincoln Continental with your friends and driving around singing? (A: No).



This album reflects Jessica Hernandez and The Deltas absolutely irresistible sound and personality. As good as Secret Evil is, and it will for sure be high on my Best of 2014 list, I still sense that Jessica Hernandez' best work is ahead of her. The sky is the limit for this band. Get on this bandwagon now while there's still room.

You can pre-order Secret Evil now for just $7.99 at iTunes here.

Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas Facebook page
Artist web page, tour dates etc

NEW SONGS: Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires - "The Weeds Downtown" and "The Company Man"

It's fitting to share this newest track from Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires on a Rolling Stones Friday, as I find more than a trace of "Rocks Off" in it. Lee may be the most compelling front man in rock music today... we've certainly been on board with them since their first track came across our transom back in 2012. Sub Pop did a smart thing, because The Glory Fires have the potential to be the kind of "niche/mass appeal" band that label has served well in the past. The punk attitude and the classic rock riffs would (well, usually do) sound stiff or hackneyed in others' hands. Here, they're just evidence of the, well, glory of Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires.

The album is entitled Dereconstructed. Like WYMA favorites R.E.M., these guys are showing their Southern roots, and their erudition, right up front, and holding them up for examination... with a healthy helping of junkyard outsider art on the cover.



Here's "The Company Man" - revealed last month via YouTube:



The album's out May 27, but you can pre-order now via Sub Pop and get some goodies.

Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires Website
LB3 at Sub Pop
Facebook

REVIEW: King Khan and the Shrines - Idle No More

Given this blog's love of garage rock and soul music, I'm not sure how we haven't written about King Khan before, but we're about to fix that.

Let's get the preliminaries out of the way. Mr. Arish Ahmad Khan is a Canadian who's been playing in garage and soul bands since the mid-90's. His wild James Brown meets Iggy Pop stage persona is the stuff of legend. Prior to Idle No More, he hadn't released a record for 6 years as he went through a very rough stretch following the death of some close friends and other challenges that found him landing in psychiatric hospitals, Buddhist monasteries and diving deep into the culture of indigenous peoples.

Idle No More is simultaneously a cathartic release, a street party and a serious artistic statement from a man more known for wild stage antics than gravitas.

Equal parts soul and high energy garage rock, Idle No More has a deep party groove that reminds me more of Brian Jones-era Rolling Stones than anything. Few current bands use horns like this.

Let's kick it off right with "Bite My Tongue":

Here's one of my favorites "So Wild":

Interestingly, the "official" video is perhaps the most out of character song here, the deep soul of "Darkness", which recalls nothing less weighty than Nina Simone:

And on and on this fine CD goes, 12 songs of heart, swagger and soul. 

You can stream it all here at Spin Magazine web site.  

King Khan and his full on 9 piece soul band The Shrines are launching a tour now, the stage being where King Khan truly earned his crown: 

October

11 San Diego CA Casbah

12 Los Angeles CA Culture Collide Festival Festival 10/9-10/12

13 San Francisco CA Slims w/ Hell Shovel

14 Portland OR Dante's w/ Hell Shovel

15 Vancouver CAN The Rickshaw Theatre

16 Seattle WA Neumos w/ Hell Shovel

17 Boise ID Neurolux

18 Salt Lake City UT Urban Lounge w/ Hell Shovel

19 Denver CO Larimer Lounge

20 Kansas City MO The Record Bar

21 St. Paul MN Turf Club w/ BBQ Show, Toxic Shrews, Hot Rash

22 Madison WI High Noon Saloon w/ Hell Shovel

23 Chicago IL Bottom Lounge

24 Cleveland Heights OH Grog Shop w/ Hell Shovel

25 Detroit MI Magic Stick w/ Hell Shovel

26 Toronto CAN The Horseshoe Tavern

27 Montreal QC CAN La Tulipe

29 Boston MA Brighton Music Hall

30 New York NY Webster Hall

31 Philadelphia PA Union Transfer

November

1 Washington DC The Black Cat

2 Durham NC Motorco

4 Atlanta GA Terminal West w/ Hell Shovel

5 Birmingham AL The Bottletree w/ Hell Shovel

6 New Orleans LA Siberia w/ Hell Shovel

8 Austin TX Fun Fun Fun Fest Nov 8-10

9 Puerto Rico Hacienda Siesta Alegre

12 El Paso TX Tricky Falls w/ Hellshovel

13 Phoenix AZ The Crescent Ballroom

Great stuff. 

King Khan and The Shrines artist web page 

Merge Records page for King Khan and The Shrines

King Khan and The Shrines Facebook Page 

Introducing Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas

We love garage bands here at WYMA and we love soul music. Combine the two, and we get very happy.

Jessica Hernandez is from Detroit, and by Detroit I mean Detroit, not its leafy suburbs. Detroit, the famously gritty city where musical magic happens, where soul music rocks, and rock music has an R&B foundation. The city where both "Going to A Go-Go" and "Kick Out the Jams" were written and recorded.

And Jessica Hernandez is a proud carrier of that rich musical tradition. She's a rock'n'soul powerhouse blessed with an unmistakable voice and charisma to burn. Here she is singing "Caught Up":

"Caught Up" is one of 3 songs on her introductory EP Live at The Magic Bag. She is backed by the Deltas, a first rate versatile band that can rock, bring it down, and knows its way around soul and avant Detroit jazz. These Detroit boys truly have Ms. Hernandez' back. And they have a sax player, which we consider a very good thing. Listening to this makes me imagine what if Amy Winehouse had been more centered as a person and backed by a real outfit like The Drive-By Truckers?

Next up, the funky "Sorry I Stole Your Man":

Last but certainly not least, she slows it down to great effect, on "Young, Dumb and Drunk":

By now, you are hooked, wondering how is this woman and this band not famous, and how can I see them. You can go see Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas now:

Summer 2013 Tour

       6/8 – Cincinnati / Northside Tavern (Girls and Boys Night)
·       6/9 – Louisville / The New Vintage Showcase, w/ The Junkyard Dogs
·       6/10 – St. Louis / Firebird, w/ Moon Jr. and Indian Blanket
·       6/11 – Kansas City / Riot Room, w/ Blank Tapes and Beach Day
·       6/13 – Detroit / The Fillmore, w/ Metric, Family Of The Year, Serena Ryder (Riverfest)
·       6/19 – Oklahoma City / Conservatory, w/ The Sheiks and The One Seven Four
·       6/20 – El Paso / Garage Tequila Bar, w/ The Iveys
·       6/21 – Tucson / Hotel Congress
·       6/22 – Las Vegas / Beauty Bar
·       6/24 – LA / Satellite
·       6/25 – Phoenix / Last Exit Live, w/ The Sun Punchers
·       6/26 – Costa Mesa / Detroit Bar, w/ The Abigails
·       6/27 – San Diego / The Griffin
·       6/28 – Santa Barbara / Muddy Waters
·       6/29 – Long Beach / Alex’s Bar, w/ The Abigails
·       6/30 – Oakland / The New Parish
·       7/3 – Portland / Doug Fir Lounge, w/ Guantanamo Baywatch
·       7/4 – Bellingham / The Green Frog
·       7/5 – Seattle / The Crocodile Café, w/ The New Futures
·       7/6 – Bend / Les Schwab Amphitheatre, w/ Y La Bamba
·       7/9 – Boise / Neurolux (Radio Boise Tuesday)
·       7/10 – Salt Lake City / The Bar Deluxe
·       7/11 – Denver / Lost Lake Lounge
·       7/12 – Omaha / Slowdown
·       7/14 – Madison / High Noon Saloon, w/ The Family Business and The Earthlings
·       7/27 – Detroit / Oakaloosa Festival

Our strong advice here from WYMA headquarters - climb on this bandwagon while there is still room. And do not miss Jessica Hernandez if you live near or can get to any of the 26 cities above.

Do you want to know more about Jessica Hernandez, her family, background and attitude? This 5 minute feature is engaging and well worth a look:

Purchase the EP here: ITunes- Live at The Magic Bag
Expect a debut LP later this year. Rest assured, WYMA will be all over it.

Facebook page
Twitter @DetroitJess

Bonus videos for historical context:

SXSW Preview: Spider Bags

SXSW is not for everyone.  You need to be able to stay on your feet, drunk, for 15 hours a day for 4+ days while listening to loud, loud rock and roll (if you are there to hear folk music or dance bands, we cannot be friends).  However, if you can survive and enjoy that process, then SXSW is great.  Unfortunately, great just doesn't cut it when you pay $650+ for a badge and another $1000+ for flights, rooms, etc.  To take SXSW to the next level of mind-blowingly incredible, as it is most years, you have to prepare.  This is the Super Bowl of Rock and you should prepare like you are the head coach of the greatest Super Bowl team of all-time (the Pittsburgh Steelers (of course)).

There are two ways to properly prepare:  (1) skim through the 2000+ bands listed on the SXSW site, listening to those that have promising descriptions; or (2) attend with friends who have great taste and just follow them around begging for advice for 4 days.  I do both.

Over the next month or so, I (with some help from the aforementioned friends) will be previewing and reviewing some of the bands that we expect to be the sleeper highlights of SXSW.  I'll start here with one of my favorite bands, Spider Bags, THE band that you should have heard in 2012.

I am not going to say a lot about these guys because their music speaks for itself.  Spider Bags are the Charles Bukowski of wonderfully rough and majestic drunken southern garage rock.  Lead singer and primary songwriter Dan McGee, who I hope (both for the sake of his own health and my selfish need to hear this band for the next 20 years) is not living the life of the characters in his songs, musically and lyrically captures the misery of being down and out, and the joy of fighting back against it, better than anyone in rock.

In their 2007 release, A Celebration of Hunger, Spider Bags blew me away with a record that included 2 or 3 of my favorite tracks of the last 10 years, including the epic "Darkness in My Heart": 

Despite its aching and depressing beauty, "Darkness in My Heart" is not even the best song on the record.  Instead, McGee's "Waking Up Drunk," seemingly about the consequences of trying to drink away that Darkness, stands out as a true classic.  I like to think of it as the long lost bonus track from Beggars Banquet that would have made that record the best of the Rolling Stones' releases.


Enough dwelling on their glorious past.  More recently, in 2012, Spider Bags released the stunning Shake My Head, a gloriously sloppy and soulful rock masterpiece.  Brilliantly recognized as the #1 most overlooked record of 2012 by the well qualified folks over at Pop Matters, Shake My Head, is a wild and rollicking soul and rock guitar romp.  Get it.  Every song on the record is great.

Grab a beer and bottle of whisky and enjoy!

And, if you are going, don't miss these guys at SXSW.

ROCK!

REVIEW: Graham Parker and the Rumour - Three Chords Good

Graham Parker has worked steadily since his heyday in the late 1970's, and made some great records along the way (e.g. The Mona Lisa's Sister; Struck By Lightning). But the work he did with his original band the Rumour from 1976-1980 remains among the best of that era - soulful rock with pointed lyrics, big pop hooks and real passion. Comparisons to Bruce Springsteen were frequent and well deserved.  Despite enthusiastic press support and a devoted following, he never quite broke big in the US, perhaps too much the angry British young man for the mainstream Springsteen or Tom Petty crowd, yet far too musical and literate to ride with the punk bands.

Graham Parker and the Rumour then:

Graham Parker and the Rumour now: 

So it is very welcome news that after 31 years apart, Parker has reunited with the Rumour to release Three Chords Good. All original members are on board: guitarists Brinsley Schwartz and Martin Belmont, Andrew Bodnar on bass, keyboardist Bob Andrews, and Steve Goulding on drums. And I'll be damned if they haven't missed a beat. From the reggae influenced first track "Snake Oil Capital of the World" on through, it's a whipsmart, highly skilled set of performances by as good a rock band as there ever was.

Dig this title track, where they lock into a groove and ride it:

You can stream all of Three Chords Good here. It's got it all - bristling rock'n'roll, Motown flavored pop songs, socio-political rants, beautiful melodies, killer melodies.

Graham Parker resides in rock's top tier with his contemporaries Springsteen and Elvis Costello, and his heroes Van Morrison and Bob Dylan.  And Three Chords Good is a very welcome addition to his legend.

Artist page: http://www.grahamparker.net/

A bonus from the way back machine, one of my all time favorite songs:

Brian Olive - new video and free download from Two Of Everything

Brian Olive, former Greenhorne, has released one of my favorite records of 2012: Two Of Everything. Olive has rightly become very well-known this year: he's a multi-instrumentalist who worked with Dan Auerbach on Dr. John's latest record, and Two Of Everything is meeting with nearly universal approval (if not ecstasy). I'll just go ahead and add my voice to the chorus of praise.

From the funky, hard-rocking groove of opener "Left Side Rock" (free download available - click here), to the hypnotic electric piano and flutes of "Go On Easy" to the Motown rhythm section and horns fronting Lennonesque vocals on "You Can't Hide It"... the common elements are an explosion of talent and an amazing facility with different styles, tempos and genres. Everything on this record - the rhythms, the guitars, the horn sections - is well done, and Olive's vocals are certainly up to the task of carrying such a big-sounding record.

Here's a video for "Left Side Rock":



In a way, though I wouldn't call this a rehash or even particularly "retro", I'm reminded of two old records: Rick Danko and Dennis Wilson's Pacific Ocean Blue. And you would say, those two don't sound much alike, and I would agree but still say those are the ones Two Of Everything reminds me of. Both are subtle masterpieces arising out of the totality of their creators' musical journey, that forced us to look at them a little bit differently. The same thing is probably true here, although I must admit that, other than kind of enjoying the Greenhornes' sound, I was largely unaware of Olive's work before this record. Happily, that is no longer the case. Highly recommended, and available via Alive/Naturalsound Records. Alive/Naturalsound makes our world a better place.

Upcoming Brian Olive tour dates, with more to come:

8/22 Cleveland, OH - Happy Dog
8/23 Toronto, ON - Silver Dollar Room
8/24 Montreal, QC - La Divan Orange
8/25 Quebec City, QC - Le Circle
8/26 New Haven, CT - Cafe Nine
8/27 Brooklyn, NY - Union Hall
8/28 Boston, MA - O'Brien's
8/29 Pittsburgh, PA - Gooski's Bar
8/31 Louisville, KY - Zazoo's
[September West Coast Tour dates to be announced soon]

REVIEW: The Alabama Shakes - Boys and Girls

The sudden rise of the Alabama Shakes is quite a story. A year ago the band was working day jobs in Athens, Alabama, playing to crowds of 20-30 people, and self-financing their first recording with no record label or other support.

Fast forward to this week - Boys and Girls was released yesterday by ATO Records following a good old fashioned major label bidding war, the band got an excellent feature story in the Sunday New York Times, has two sold out shows in New York City, an appearance on David Letterman, and then embarks on an almost completely sold out tour that will take them to Canada, Europe, the UK and various US cities.

So why all the buzz? It's not complicated. Brittany Howard has got it. This 23 year old is blessed with a killer voice that naturally combines soul, blues and rock'n'roll. She plays guitar like her life's on the line. Somehow a young woman who was delivering mail a few months ago is now earning comparisons to Janis Joplin and Bettye LaVette. Yes, that is sort of ridiculous, but she's damn good!

In an age of Auto-Tune, ProTools, American Idol, and a maximum of 150 characters, people are starving for something genuine and lasting, and Brittany Howard and The Alabama Shakes are, as a Southern friend of mine likes to say, as real as a heart attack.

And sometimes a new band takes off because of a great song, and for the Alabama Shakes that song is "Hold On", which sounds like nothing else except just what you've been waiting for. It literally leaps out of your iPod or car radio, a young band busting out and just grabbing it, like the White Stripes on "Seven Nation Army" or Pearl Jam's "Jeremy".

Howard sounds like such an old soul, right at the onset of "Hold On" (lead track on the CD) -

Bless my heart

bless my soul

didn't think I'd make it

to 22 years old

There is something completely timeless about Howard's voice, her writing, and the band's playing. It has no self-conscious retro feel, instead coming across completely instinctual and deeply passionate. What I like best about Boys and Girls is its greasy sound and rough edges. This vibe of 'let's just play and not over think this' comes through especially well on "Hold On" but also the album's 3rd song, "Hang Loose", a terrific rock'n'roll song that wouldn't seem out of place in a Bruce Springsteen live set.

The band has far more in common with say the Drive-By Truckers and old Rolling Stones records than any slick neo-soul of today. Boys and Girls hisses, crackles and rocks, while wearing its Southern working class hero heart on its sleeve, as here on "Rise to the Sun" with its garage rock feel:

Brittany Howard and Heath Fogg both play guitar with real feeling without ever overdoing it, while the rhythm section of bassist Zac Cockrell and drummer Steve Jackson play like old pros with a groove that would make them proud just west of Athens Alabama down Hwy 72 in Muscle Shoals. Add the tasty piano and keyboards and all it's all there - the rock and the roll.

They can slow it down too. One of the highlights here is the title track "Boys & Girls" a ballad that recalls the Memphis soul sound and even Bob Dylan's "Every Grain of Sand". Howard's fine writing skills avoid the typical cliches, as demonstrated on this title track, where she laments the loss of a super tight childhood friendship, their platonic relationship sacrificed to the complications and outside pressures of adolescence. A good song topic, real stuff, Howard not looking over anyone's shoulder or dressing up in someone else's clothes.

The band has the confidence and the right instinct to keep things economical, the 11 songs here clocking in at 39 minutes, though still finding room to kick things into a higher gear at the end of cuts like "Be Mine" that have a Southern rock jam band spirit without the guitar cliches. Here's a live video of "Be Mine" from our friends here in Portland at KINK radio:

The entire CD is being streamed here free (for awhile anyway): http://www.npr.org/2012/04/01/148918546/first-listen-alabama-shakes-boys-and-girls

You need to be as true to the feel and the real as the Alabama Shakes themselves and go buy this one at your local independent record store.

And let's not forget that our fearless leader here at WYMA, John Hyland, tipped our readers off to the Alabama Shakes on October 18, 2011, which probably seems like a lifetime ago to the young folks in this band given the deserved but truly crazy turns turns in their world during the past few months.

My advice? Get on this bandwagon now while there is still a little room.

Artist web page: http://www.alabamashakes.com/

Sam Russell and the Harborrats

Before I began blogging about music, I had a collection of discs that I would take in my car. One of them was a mix of various songs by a Seattle group called The Harborrats. I didn't know much about them except that they were led by a fellow Wisconsonite, Sam Russell, and their live shows often featured waffles, toasted on the spot and tossed into the crowd. I ran across my Harborrats collection this weekend, so I resolved to see what, if anything, Sam and the gang have going on. Go ahead, click on the play button for "Dive Bar Blues (Crossing Russell Road)" by Sam Russell and the Harborrats, and keep reading:

Good stuff, right? But a good song released last December is just a small part of the story. Kenosha, Wisconsin native Sam Russell, frequently with The Harborrats and other worthy contributors, has been engaged in the Blue Moon Bible project, an intended eight albums with eight songs each. Four EPs are finished to date. The style of the music is somewhat eclectic, but can best be described as garage soul or Americana soul. But each song highlights Sam's range. As a vocalist he can deliver folk songs, soul songs and rockers, and he can do it from baritone to mid tenor. As a songwriter, he seems to have no genre boundaries, and has the ability to write songs that sound like classics from the first listen.

Sam also has a solo album, The Year of the Cow (well, I told you he is from Wisconsin), coming out on June 5, 2012. The two-track single "I Am the Ghost" has been released, and you can stream it here:


Despite the upcoming solo album, however, I can't avoid giving a bit of press to the Harborrats' material here as well, because I think it is really good and criminally underexposed. You can get to all of it from the links below, but I'll highlight a favorite song (or more) from each of the Blue Moon Bible series.
Volume A was also called The Katie Sermon. Here is the rousing eighth track, "Mt. Prospect":


Volume B, also called The Youngest Sister, featured these four songs that I have on my car mix:






Volume C, Salted Caramel Shake features this great track:


Volume D, The Sugar Nile, includes these Rocksteady74 favorites:



By the way, The Harborrats and other contributing musicians on the recent releases are as follows:

For the "I Am The Ghost" single:
Sam Russell-vocals, guitar
Kate Noson-vocals
Michael Spaly-fiddle
Ken Nottingham-upright bass

For the "Dive Bar Blues" single:
Sam Russell-lead vocals, electric guitar
James Apollo-2nd vocal, harmonica, Nord keyboard
Michael Spaly-electric violin, backing vocal
Allison Tulloss-ooo's and ahh's
Kjell Anderson-fiddle, backing vocal
Toby Hanson-accordion
Carey Rayburn-trumpet
Ken Nottingham-upright bass, backing vocal
Schuyler Jones-electric bass, backing vocal
Dave Forrester-drums, backing vocal
Isaac Chirino-percussion

For The Sugar Nile EP:
Sam Russell—vocals, guitars
Michael Spaly—vocals, guitar, violin, mandolin
Allison Tulloss—vocals
James Apollo—vocals, keyboards
Schuyler Jones—electric bass
Ken Nottingham—upright bass
Dave Forrester—drums and percussion
Isaac Chirino—drums and percussion
Kjell Anderson—violin
Toby Hanson—accordion
Carey Rayburn—trumpet
Justin Roeser—guitar on 3
Scott Andrew—vocal on 6
Johnny Sangster—Hammond B3 on 2
Kate Noson—backwards vocals on 2

Website
Bandcamp
Facebook

The Harborrats website