Posts by Jason Macneil

It’s been done and will be done many times again but when artists decide to honor a classic rock album, it can end up being a stale, cheesy rehash or resulting in something truly strong. Thankfully, when it comes to Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon the Easy Star All Stars can dub this album primarily fabulous. 

Put together musicians who have played with Zeppelin, Deep Purple and others and you should expect a concoction of ‘70s era hard rock with a blues belting vocal delivery. The new “super group” Black Country Communion is just that. Featuring Glenn Hughes on vocals, master blues-rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa, and Jason Bonham on drums, the band plow through a heavy, riff-saturated opener entitled “Black Country” with Hughes planting himself firmly inside the rocker.

John Prine’s In Person & On Stage is nothing stellar but the live collection of tracks shows that the longtime singer-songwriter is still doing quite well for himself. With a tandem of guitarist Jason Wilber and bassist Dave Jacques fleshing out most of the 14 songs, Prine begins with the warm, toe-tapping “Spanish Pipedream” and rarely misses the mark on other gems like “Unwed Fathers,” “Paradise” and “Bear Creek Blues.”

When you listen to old-school soul singer Sharon Jones and her brassy Dap Kings, you get the sense that if you dropped your iPod the recording might begin skipping like a vinyl release. Such is the case with I Learned The Hard Way, her latest collection of retro R&B which hits all the right notes Jones nailed on her prior release 100 Days, 100 Nights.

Brooklyn critical darlings Yeasayer have upped the quality ante somewhat from their first effort, and it is definitely apparent from the opening plodding prog-electro feel of “The Children.” Although not necessarily for everyone’s sonic palette, the core duo of Chris Keating and Anand Wilde at times resemble Animal Collective, Hot Chip, Tears Fears and Tom Waits (or Thomas Dolby) simultaneously.

After reuniting behind an album that was praised (and panned) by some, Clem Snide have returned with a far more focused record, one which gets off on the right foot with the punchy, punk-ish “Walmart Parking Lot,” resembling an equal mix of Ryan Adams and Arcade Fire. The same can be said for the urgent “BFF” later in the album. Meanwhile lead singer Eef Barzelay also shines on the lighter, intriguing, roots-meets-strings “Denise” and extremely tender “Denver” that is definitely worth repeated listens. 

Southern sounding singer-songwriter Ken Will Morton’s latest release True Grit brings to mind a cross between Tom Waits, Marah, Steve Earle circa Exit O and Ryan Adams. Whether it’s the safe but solid opening title track to the roots-rock nugget “Gamblin’ Man’s Blues,” Morton can pen a song with an equally strong melody. And thankfully Morton doesn’t ease off that quality pedal for a moment judging by the mid-tempo “Hard Weathered Life.”

Having opened for Wilco and Meat Puppets among others, this Minnesota band makes a huge impression with album number two. The trio of drummer Eric Pollard, bassist Steve Garrington and singer/guitarist Alan Sparhawk kick things off with an endearing slow-burner “Hide It Away” evoking a blend of Explosions In The Sky and Coldplay.

Garage-y guitar driven for the most part, bands such as Woven Bones (“Spirits Roam”) and Dikes Of Holland’s “Little City Girl” would give Band Of Skulls a run for the money in the near future.

Having supported The Flaming Lips and Raconteurs in recent years, psychedelic rock band Birds Of Avalon indeed have an uncanny ability to make retro sound relevant again on Uncanny Valley, especially on the short but punchy “Side Two” but up the ante on the heady “I Never Knew” and the vibrant “Eyesore” thanks to the guitar work of husband Paul Siler and wife Cheetie Kumar.