Choice Cuts: March 2002 - Page 4
© Adam McKibbin
Highlight Track: "Across 100 Summers" is the band at their best, featuring contagious vocal harmonies, trippy guitar work and tribally-influenced percussion.
Honorable Mention: "Grace"For More Info: Visit http://www.attilaanddaveproject.com
Artist: Heather Shayne Blakeslee
Album: Bones
The Scoop: Contemporary folk with a cast of downtrodden characters. Blakeslee keeps her songs fairly unadorned-the instrumentation is neither dense nor complex-so her voice and, more importantly, her stories have plenty of time at the forefront.Highlight Track: "Sequoia" is a soulful track about a young woman abandoned by her parents at the age of 17. Instead of musing about how she's "not a girl / not yet a woman," the title character instead finds empowerment in her situation and braces herself for a better tomorrow.
Honorable Mention: In her liner notes, Blakeslee mentions that her father used to play her Dylan & Croce tunes. The influence is readily seen on "The Ballad of Anna Mae," which follows a miserable marriage and the housewife who tries (and fails) to escape her husband's Bible-backed rage.For More Info: Visit http://www.heathershayneblakeslee.com or http://www.cdbaby.com/blakeslee
Artist: Justin Roth
Album: In Between
The Scoop: Singer/songwriter Roth turns his eye toward the moments in life that we let pass by too easily (thus the album title). These songs are about the simple, often wonderful times in life, like sharing a glass-then a bottle-of wine with an old friend from college. David Wilcox and Martin Sexton are strong influences, and Roth has had the chance to appear in concert with both of them.Highlight Track: The other highlight of In Between is Roth's intricate guitar work, and it's on lovely display on the instrumental "Seven Sisters."
Honorable Mention: "This Charming Town" is Roth's response to Shawn Colvin saying that folk singers always write a song about wanting to leave their hometown, then later write a song about missing it. "This Charming Town" is step one, and a good example of the type of thoughtful, lyrical songs to expect on In Between.For More Info: Visit http://www.justinroth.com
Artist: Totally Blind Drunk Drivers
Album: The Breast Off
The Scoop: Merry punk pranksters who are huge in their native Estonia. The transition to the U.S. shouldn't be tough, since their brand of bouncy, pop-friendly punk has already found its niche in the American market. Typical lyrics have singer Urmas Voolpriit demanding to know why "homeless people act so crazy," then finishing with a few lines from John Lennon's "Imagine." These Drunk Drivers have the punk spirit, and it's fused fused with a bubbly pop sensibility.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
