Welcome back to another go round at sharing some of my favorite recent discs; I am again sworn to cover as much music as possible while keeping my comments short and sweet. As always be sure to legally purchase these albums from your local record store of choice. Without them Asheville would be a little less cool of a town.
Kelly Hogan
I Like to Keep Myself in Pain
Anti Music
Long time Neko Case backing vocalist Kelly Hogan steps out to embrace her inner band leader, and does so in rather spectacular fashion. Abetted by a raft of songwriting friends, including such notables as the Magnetic Fields’ Stephin Merritt, Robyn Hitchcock, Andrew Bird, and M. Ward, Hogan has put together a disc that revels in its own heartache while keeping the pity quotient mercifully in check.
Her first solo release in eleven years is a soulful gathering of kindred spirits. Backed by such legends as Booker T. Jones and Marvin Gaye drummer James Gadsen (along with some of this era’s finest players) Hogan infuses these songs with just the right mix of down home soul and country twang. Much like fellow songstress Shelby Lynne, her strength lies in a knack for spicing up a stylistic gumbo that includes a bit of everything while retaining its own flavor.
Despite a highly acclaimed four album catalog Hogan has yet to break into the spotlight; this exceptional set shows she’s ready, willing, and more than able to do so. ****
Jesse Terry
Empty Seat on a Plane
Jesse Terry writes the sort of songs that may not immediately grab your attention but certainly require repeated listens. The pared down nature of his music – and this is never more evident than on Empty Seat on a Plane – hardly lends itself to hooks that engage or melodies that implant in your cranium. What they do is settle into your subconscious, and once there they don’t let go.
“Let the Blue Skies Go to Your Head” is a prime example: Its insidiously cheerful melody contradicts the girl it portrays; one who is “afraid to take chances” and lives a life of missed adventure. That sentiment is balanced out with “Wishful Thinking” in which the protagonist unabashedly believes “anything is possible.” And how could you not love a line such as “But what I fear most is waking uninspired?”
To be sure this is ‘message music’ and while it occasionally trips over its own sentiment it still works on its own unassuming terms. The piano and guitar dominated arrangements give the songs an uncluttered feel and when Terry does stretch out, such as in the soulful “Bitterroot Valley” or the country tinged mourn of “Coyotes,” it offers a glimpse of what else he might have up his sleeve. It’s the sort of lovely simplicity that makes this album a quiet joy, and one worthy of your attention. ****
Don Williams
And So it Goes
Sugar Hill Music
Even during his hit making 1970s and 80s peak Don Williams sounded forty years older than he was, a world weary troubadour of hard times and hard living. Now that he’s reached his eighth decade the man hasn’t changed much, even if the industry has. On his first album in eight years Williams brings along such high profile friends as Alison Krauss, Vince Gill and Keith Urban but there’s no doubt whose show this is.
Williams’ everyman supple delivery, coupled with stripped down arrangements and a flair for laid back tempo may seem stylistically out of touch, but the truth is he was cool long before country was. Such low key delights as “I Just Come Here for the Music” and “Imagine That” are ideal examples that less can be more.
At ten tracks and less than 40 minutes And So It Goes may leave you wanting more but don’t worry: Williams’ catalog stretches back to1966 and includes nearly fifty amazingly consistent albums. And while those looking for the overblown arrangements and vocal theatrics that inhabit too much of modern country music will be sadly disappointed, for my money the economical approach of the singer known as “the Gentle Giant” is a very welcome guest. ***1/2
Various Artists
Pa’s Fiddle: the Music of America
This remarkable DVD captures a January 2012 performance from the Loveless Barn in Nashville. First aired (in truncated form) on PBS, the entire concert, based on the music referenced in The Little House on the Prairie books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, is headed by musical director Randy Scruggs and showcases an all-star backing band (Music City vets Matt Combs, Dennis Crouch, Chad Cromwell, Hoot Hester, and Shad Cobb) along with featured artists Randy Travis, Rodney Atkins, Ronnie Milsap, Ashton Shepherd, The Roys, Natalie Grant, and Committed.
As with any ensemble effort the show is a bit uneven – depending on how well the viewer likes any given singer – but what doesn’t waver is the genuine passion and reverences these top flight musicians have for the material and the intent. Randy Travis’ “The Sweet By and By” is stunning in its complexity while Natalie Grant extracts every nuance out of “My Old Kentucky Home.”
All of this builds to a grand finale; a cascading all star rendering of “Ol’ Dan Tucker” that nearly blows off the roof. It’s the sort of moment that reminds us of the intrinsic power of these songs – some of which date back nearly two centuries –and how timeless they truly are. Pa’s Fiddle is a celebration of artistry, faith, heritage, and the genius of a woman named Laura Ingalls Wilder. *****
Chris Smither
Hundred Dollar Valentine
Signature Music
While known for having penned hits for the likes of Bonnie Raitt and Dr. John Chris Smither has sporadically released a stream of consistently engaging studio albums.
Paying the bills by way of incessant touring (Smither regularly plays 250 gigs a year) keeps him busy, as Hundred Dollar Valentine is only his twelfth studio album (and his first of all original material) over a forty year career. And while it’s great to see him again making records, I still have the sense that Smither views each subsequent release as little more than an excuse to get back on the road; the laid back performances are as comfortable as well worn shoes but lack the crackle and intensity of seeing him on stage.
His deep, mellifluous rural (despite growing up in New Orleans as the son of college professors) tinged voice has aged well and certainly longtime collaborator David Goodrich’s sympathetic production lends just the right touch of down home gentility. But when his right hand man Stephen Bruton passed away in 2009, Smither’s music seemed to lose its focus, and this effort gives little indication that he’s yet recovered.
It sounds much like a group of talented players gathering on someone’s front porch, tossing around a few ideas and having a heck of a good time. But when the last guitar case is closed little of what was made lingers on. **1/2
Laetitia Sadier
Silencio
As the vocalist for Stereolab, Laetitia Sadier embraced a style that could be both hypnotic and off putting, a dreamy mix of Kraut Rock (the band formed while she was living in Europe) and lounge-pop that was both intoxicating and grating.
For her second solo release Sadier has toned down the harsher elements of her music – the abrupt shifts of tone and volume that were often ideas rather than songs – in favor of a more deliberate and cohesive entity that is no less fascinating. It is in fact a huge step forward and the most satisfying record she’s ever made.
Her songwriting is more focused and deliberate; with lyrics that easily bring to mind a less analytical Sam Phillips, and arrangements – even when they occasionally overpower her supple voice – that allow the band and singer to float effortlessly from mood to mood.
Sadier, who wrote all the songs herself, has learned how to pare the excess from her songs and let the songs speak for themselves. She steadfastly refuses to back down from her leftist leanings – nor should she – but in such gems as “Silent Spot” and “There Is a Price to Pay for Freedom (And It Isn’t Security)” she’s able to make her point without overstating it.
Written in the midst of the European debt crisis, “The Rule of the Game” clearly states her case: “The ruling class neglects again responsibility, over-indulged children drawn to cruel games and pointless pleasures” (touché!). They get even more so in “Auscultation in the Nation” as she eviscerates the faceless bankers whose rolling of the dice affects us all; “who are these people? What do we care about their self-proclaimed authorities?” she ponders, even as the question goes unanswered.
The remainder of the album tones it down a bit, and by turning her attention to the complexity of building relationships in a seemingly uncaring world Sadier gives us a glimmer of hope.
Woody Guthrie famously emblazoned his guitar case with a sticker proclaiming “This Guitar Kills Fascists.” Sadier does so in a more indirect fashion, with voice, lyrics, and a determination to not be overcome by the indifference of others. Bravo and more power to her. ****
Dark Dark Dark
Wild Go
Supply and Demand Music
The music of Dark/Dark/Dark could have easily emerged from 1950, 1920, or 2010, and that is most certainly what the point of the band is all about.
There’s plenty in the way of jaunty piano, rumbling percussion, and coolly detached mid-20th century vocal jazz (courtesy of lead singer None Marie Invie) to intrigue any listener with an open mind, but what really makes this bubble is the effortless way in which the band genre hops – in much the same vein as The Dresden Dolls – without the slightest hint of conceit.
Subtle touches such as the feedback that anchors the background of “Daydreaming,” letting brushed cymbals, piano, and vocals take the lead, helps underscore the idea of rock & roll as a means rather than an end. The languid flow of “Celebrate” with its bounce between lead and backing vocals exemplify just how audacious this quintet can be. Even the vaudevillian tone of “Say the Word” works as a study in melancholic sing along.
Marshall LaCount’s occasional vocal leads only highlight how good Invie is in contrast; it may be nice to spread the wealth around but this band works best when its principle voice is front and center. ***1/2