Sacred Cowpats

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Suede – Night Thoughts – Album Review

Review for www.nomoreworkhorse.com

http://nomoreworkhorse.com/2016/01/27/suede-night-thoughts-album-review/

Monday, January 25, 2016

James Yorkston and the Athletes - Moving Up Country

James Yorkston and the Athletes released their debut album in 2002. What set Yorkston and co apart from their fellow Scottish sad b**t**ds at the time was the fact that the music is very much folk-inflected. Opener In Your Hands is a prime example, relaxed rolling guitars, gentle percussion and Yorkston's gentle, soothing voice, joined by accordion and harmonica. The violin on St Patrick and accordion on Sweet Jesus gives these songs a sort of "trad" feel. But just when the album might start to seem a bit samey, one of the standouts, torch song Tender to the Blues arrives. A rather doleful lament, the accordion featuring here feels a little more... continental, but the centrepiece is a fine vocal by Yorkston, singing "I'm no fool, my heart's just exposed".

The mood shifts again with the lazy, carefree Moving Up Country, Roaring The Gospel. One of the really chilled out moments here, the guitar, piano, concertina and clarinet combine to great effect. Cheating the Game features banjo, brushes and concertina, while pacy strum I Spy Dogs is the fastest thing here. Later, 6:30 Is Just Way Too Early has a fine, languid guitar and organ before the album finishes with a decent version of the traditional I Know My Love. So a fine, relaxed album for lazy days.

Friday, January 22, 2016

Songs: Ohia - Didn't It Rain

After the woozy delights of Ghost Tropic, Jason Molina released quite a different sounding album in 2002 in Didn't It Rain. It feels for first time like a band album rather than solo. And it sounds like he's taken a dose of Neil Young. The title track is like Young's Old Man but slower and darker with Jennie Benford providing a moody wordless vocal accompaniment, over clean and clear guitar chords. The tension is ratcheted up a notch on the following track Steve Albini's Blues, where a simple, insistent two chord guitar progression lasts throughout the song as Molina and co softly moan "on the bridge out of Hammond".

Ring the Bell introduces a fuller, more rounded sound as the repetitive, loping chords sway back and forth. Later, the album shifts to prime Zuma-era Crazy Horse with the swaying Blue Factory Flame. The track is strangely addictive, as over eight minutes Molina and Benford sing repeatedly about being "paralysed by the emptiness". After the brief Two Blue Lights the album concludes with Blue Chicago Moon. Those disillusioned with Neil Young's more recent material could do worse than check this out, though it's beyond imitation, the track is unhurried, taking its sweet time to unfurl. Molina again makes use of repetition, singing about "endless, endless, endless depression".

It's another fine album from Jason Molina, showing progression from Ghost Tropic, really getting into his stride on this one.