Widespread Panic – Street Dogs (ALBUM REVIEW)

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Jambands tend to get a bad name. They’re either accused of endless noodling or relegated to the category of being strictly a festival sensation, best enjoyed in the context of live performance. Melodies are relegated to being merely an avenue for the musicians’ dexterity, and anything of the hummable variety is few and far between. Ironically, that notion was likely most propagated by the two bands that are considered forerunners of the genre, the Allman Brothers and the Grateful Dead, groups that also proved that tunefulness doesn’t necessarily have to come at the expense of instrumental acumen.

It’s that uncommonly eclectic image that Widespread Panic has been tagged with for practically 30 years, ever since they first formed in their hometown of Athens Georgia. These days, the band  spends roughly half their year on the road, extolling a populist vibe at countless festivals and prestigious venues before legions of rabid devotees. And given that Widespread Panic are rightfully lumped in with today’s extended jam band scene, they can be held accountable for purveying a certain amount of that widely held stereotype.

To their credit however, Widespread Panic have also proven to be somewhat more ambitious when it comes to making music that’s far more memorable than a series of riffs and refrains can ever offer. Over the course of a dozen studio albums and nearly as many live offerings, they’ve managed to keep a well maintained balance between their spirited spontaneity and more careful calculation, giving listeners opportunity to ooh and awe at their musicality while also getting a firm grasp on their melodic intuition. Tracks like “Cease Fire” and “Angels Don’t Sing the Blues” from their latest opus, Street Dogs, prove the point repeatedly. Lyrical guitar lines soar over organ-drenched, rhythm rich instrumental passages, providing a wealth of unceasingly fusionesque frenzy and fascination.

Likewise, Street Dogs finds the band mining a more soulful scenario, one that exploits John Bell’s expressive vocals and Jimmy Herring’s searing fretwork in equal measure. On the bluesy, somewhat sinister sounding “Honky Red,” the group opts for a particularly dramatic frame of reference, one that overshadows the musicians’ individual outlays completely. As a result, it sizes up as one of their most expressive songs ever. “The Poorhouse of Positive Thinking” makes for another standout, an upbeat outing that befits its title while making for a rather merry interlude. The jaunty “Street Dogs for Breakfast” accomplishes the same. However, that’s not to say they negate their more frenetic tendencies. “Welcome to My World” comes across as positively anthemic, while the overtly assertive “Tail Dagger” seems destined to become a standout of their live sets.

Then again, it’s safe to say that Widespread Panic possess the smarts and savvy to turn any excursion they undertake into a crowd-pleasing spectacle. It’s their ability to transcend those trappings which makes their music that much more memorable.