With projects as varied as Armchair Martian and Drag the River, it’s pretty clear that Jon Snodgrass is comfortable in some different musical arenas. His new album Tace isn’t really a solo album, it is a project that falls under the umbrella of Jon Snodgrass and Buddies. Some of the buddies include Stephen Egerton (Descendents, ALL) and Stacey Dee (Bad Cop, Bad Cop). Those guest musicians help lend a punk feel both in sound and in the energy they bring to the record.
It’s clear from the outset that this is an album that leans more toward the rock than the alt-country of Drag the River. “Renaissance Man,” for instance, is a raucous song with the same kind of energy that you would expect from a song that features Joey Cape from Lagwagon. Not only that, but the song ends as abruptly as any Ramones tune. That’s not a bad thing. The song hits, then it finishes, almost like it were being made for a 45.
While most of the record leans more toward rock and even punk, there is some glimpse of alt-country sounds in “boyzIImen”. This mellow acoustic song features John Moreland and sounds like something that Snodgrass might have written for a Drag the River album.
The way this album was recorded, it almost seems like Snodgrass had an Uber waiting outside the studio. That’s not meant as an insult. It’s just meant to say that this album was recorded with an immediacy – to the point that you can actually hear Snodgrass clear his throat at the beginning of some songs. Not only that, but the songs all have an immediate finality to them. There are no fade-outs. Each song just ends and leads immediately to the next one.
At the end of the album, Snodgrass indulges his love of baseball with some audio that was recorded at a baseball game. That is followed by a song called “go baseball” and an outro of an organ from a baseball game. It makes for a fun end to a fun album.
With short, hard-hitting songs, this album is over before you know it, but it’s refreshing to hear something that is definitely not over-produced. He assembled a good cast and proceeded to make a record that is true to the roots of punk represented by the guest musicians.
Photo credit: Imelda Michalczyk
