Talbot Adams - Community/Recession Era

Name: Talbot Adams
Album: Community/Recession Era
Year: 2015
Style: Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Psych
Similar Bands: Beatles, Elliot Smith, Ween, Wesley Stace, Matthew Sweet
"One-Word" Review: Lo-fi Bedroom Dread Creepers
Based Out Of: Mississippi
Label: Secret Identity Records

 Cover, Record

Back, Record

Community/Recession Era (2015)

1. Grey Pinstripes 2:54
2. Acceptance 2:01
3. Different Names 2:14
4. Looking Forward 2:26
5. Sins 2:41
6. Country 2:13
7. So Tired 2:41 / 
8. Chips Cashed In 3:57
9. Recession Era 4:14
10. You Don't Know Me At All 3:14
11. Love Goes Round and Round 1:52
12. Have a Little Fun 2:28

Album Rating (1-10): 8.0

Members & Other Bands:

• Talbot Adams - Writer, Performer, Recorder, Mixing (Royal Pendletons, The Darkest Hours, Preacher's Kids, Jenny Jeans, Dutch Masters, The Checkmates, Black & Whites, Lover!) 
• Brad Boatright - Mastering
• David Rhoden - Artwork

Unknown-ness: Never heard of this artist, but as he does everything on his own, I imagine this to be some mopey bedroom indie tracks with a bit of an Americana style, based on the dark, small town artwork.

Album Review: There is a little reverb in most of the songs that give it a psych effect, while at the root, most of the tracks feel like 50-60's oldies with simple rhyme and musical patterns ("Acceptance" & "You Don't know Me At All"). Some of the tracks have a country-era Ween-demo-like quality to them, as they are produced in an echoing lofi sense. The B side has more produced songs, and first track "Chips Cashed In" sounds especially Ween-like, with vocals somewhere between Aaron Freeman and Matthew Sweet. Overall, there is a quiet, calm and subdued environment created by these songs: relaxed, but not without worry or a looming sense of sadness. Like leaving for vacation, and not remembering if you turned off the stove.

Stand Out Track: Chips Cashed In

Links:
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Mylon Lefevre - Rock N' Roll Resurrection

Band: Mylon Lefevre
Album: Rock N' Roll Resurrection
Year: 1979
Style: Funk Rock, Disco
Similar Bands: Blasters, War, Parliament Funkadelic, Steve Miller Band
"One Word" Review: Mature Southern Disco-Ronk
Based Out of: Gulfport, Mississippi
Label: Mercury, Phonogram, Polygram

Rock N' Roll Resurrection - Cover & Sleeve

Rock N' Roll Resurrection - Back & Sleeve

Rock N' Roll Resurrection - Record

Rock N' Roll Resurrection (1980)

1. Let it Flow 4:27
2. Shake 2:52
3. Prisoner 3:02
4. Life Saver 3:34
5. Baby Don't Hold Back Now 3:36 /
6. Dance the Night Away 5:13
7. Sunlight 5:17
8. I Keep On Loving You 3:29
9. Work To Do 3:22
10. Declaration of Love 3:35

Album Rating (1-10): 5.0

Members & Other Bands:Lillian Boutte - Vocals (Olympia Brsss Band)
Tony Broussard - Bass
Nancy Fisher - Vocals
Skip Godwin - Engineer, Remixing
Sam Henry Jr - Keyboards, Fender
Steve Hughes - Guitar
Mylon LeFevre - Guitar, Vocals (Singing LeFevres, Holy Smoke Doo Dah Band, The Gathering Ground Band, Airborn, Broken Heart)
Vernon Manuel - Vocals
Sharon Nabonne - Vocals
Leo Nocentelli - Bass, Guitar (Meters, Funky Meters)
Roger Pope - Drums (Hookfoot)
Caleb Quaye - Gutiars (Argosy, Hookfoot)
Tom "Rock" Robb - Bass
Allen Toussaint - Keyboards, Acoustic Piano, Clavinet, Electric 88, Producer, Remixing Vocals (Background)
Kenneth "Afro" Williams - Percussion
Joel Katz - Personal Representation
Mike McCarty - Art Direction & Photography
Danny Jones - Recording

Unknown-ness: Never heard of Mylon, but as far as I can tell by the title and artwork, this looks to be a straight up Glam record. The hair, leather, title Rock N' Roll Resurrection, and emotion on the live shot just scream style over content. There is a chance that there is more prog than glam, but that is a fine line in the first place. Either way, looking at all of that in comparison to the song titles, it should at least be a fun record. Also like the disclaimer: "If you don't like rock & roll, put this back where you got it"

Album Review: So from what I read, this is his departure album. From here he found his god and dedicated his life to Christian things, including his own ministry. It will be fun to see if there was any hint of that here, or if this was simply over-saturation of “sin” which lead to rehab and mind erasing.

“Let it Flow” slowly, grooves in with wood block clicks and a bluesy deep guitar. The vocals are gritty and not quite words. There is a delightful backing chorus of female vocals which give the song a lot of class, and oddly, a touch of disco. But that could also be the strings that accompany the vocals. The rest of the song is funky, thanks to the bouncy bass. And sax is added in the end, as if to say this is what we were going for all along, and we’re just now giving the riddle away.
“Shake” starts with horns from the get go and grooves along with a fun bluesy R&B melody. Most of the lyrics are a general advisement on how to do the dance move, the shake, just like oldies taught you the twist or the swim.
“Prisoner” feels more southern rock/country in nature than funk or R&B. But here the lyrics are intelligible and deep pitch. This is a Sunday morning song, as in, it could accompany a waking up at home scene. The end features the female chorus in the background lightening up the mood even more, and bringing a gospel feel to the song.
“Life Saver” is a super space funky groove, with watery, echoy jangle-guitar and exotic stellar synth effects all backed by an enlightening bass line.
“Baby Don't Hold Back Now” slips down south for a healthy dose of southern rock. A tinkling honky-tonk piano is buried down deep.

“Dance the Night Away” is a soulful sexy disco number. Strings, wakka-wah guitar and horns take you back to the roller-disco floor. The straight forward two beat drums fuel the coked up dancing rut. And the name pretty much says it all. Toward the end, bongos enter the music soundscape, bringing a more honest jungle rhythm
“Sunlight” begins with a sentimental tinkling piano, and the vocals are light like a Bee-Gees song, or a musical’s take on a day of awakening on a new life. Perhaps this could be read as his awakening to religion, because it sure sounds like it could be.
“I Keep On Loving You” brings back the funk with an honest, cultured vocal, and a side stepping rhythm. The backing female chorus supports the basic melody with its non-lyrical ooohs and baaahs.
“Work To Do” is a shaking jittery funk song, reminding me a little of the singing style of the Black Crows. It has that touch of Disco at the same time, but it can really be seen as either genre, or both at the same time.
“Declaration of Love” has a slow tempo and understanding vibe in its tone. It builds up slowly, sparingly and simplistically with a jangly guitar, slow bass beat, steady drums, female chorus and string section until they come together in a disco ballad chorus.

Stand Out Track: Life Saver

Links:Mylon's Ministry

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Colour Revolt - The Cradle

Band: Colour Revolt
Album: The Cradle
Year: 2010
Style: Indie Rock, Alternative
Similar Bands: Modest Mouse, Walkmen, Broken Social Scene, Dismemberment Plan, Cursive
"One-Word" Review: Sad-Bastard-Alterna-Prog
Based Out Of: Jackson, Mississippi
Label: New Fear, Dualtone

The Cradle - Cover, Back, CD
The Cradle - Inside & Tray

The Cradle (2010)

1. 8 Years 3:37
2. Our Names 5:27
3. Heartbeat 3:07
4. The Cradle 3:05
5. Everything Is The Same 4:35
6. She Don't Talk 4:43
7. Each Works 3:59
8. Mona Lisa 4:04
9. Brought To Life 5:07
10. Reno 6:02

Album Rating (1-10): 5.5

Members & Other Bands:

Jesse Coppenbarger - Vox, Guitars, Keys (Fletcher)

Sean Kirkpatrick - Guitars, Vox (Fletcher)

Daniel Davidson - Drums, Percussion (Norma Jean)

Brooks Tipton - Keys (Unwed Sailor, Bear Colony, Black Pond)

Hank Sullivant - Bass, Producer (The Whigs)

Alex Hornbake - Engineer

Clay Jones - Mixing

John Golden - Mastering

Louise Hviid - Vox

Matt Govaere - Art Direction & Design

Robert Lenz - Art Direction & Design

Joshua Burwell - Interior Illustrations

Unknown-ness: I've seen the band's name around before, but I've never heard them. I interpret them to be some ultra hipster band with droning sound (because of the thickness of the abstract cover artwork and use of the word revolt in the band name). I got this CD to see what they sound like, as it was a free cast off at work. I'll have to take note of the "dirty track" #1.

Album Review: “8 Years” is a story, so I’ve read, about the dead end future of a struggling band. The vocals are partially sung/partially spoken over progressive driving music. The moaning in the chorus is more annoying than interesting. The music is slightly disjointed with its anti-parallel guitars. It is like a bad version of Dismemberment Plan. The end of the track adds an emo-piano hook, just for fun.
“Our Names” begins like a shoe-gazing ballad. The wispy, southern-swampish vocals layer over driving, yet non-threatening drums. The song is continually building, but it does not amount to any big delivery.
“Heartbeat” has a bit of a Cursive feel to it with the vocal’s urgency and the structure of the melody. Musically, it has a lot of starts, stops, pauses, and tempo changes.
“The Cradle” begins with heavy guitars, and reminds me of a Ziggy Stardust intro. The vocals are annoyingly light and weepy; a little bit like Winnne the Pooh. Otherwise it is a straightforward alterna-prog song.
“Everything Is The Same” gets a quiet, meditative start. The song sounds sad, quiet and dreary, and is even sung like a Noah & The Whale song.

“She Don't Talk” begins with a steady hum/ring and fuzzed out grungy guitars. Then the drums pick up and the song blasts off with a poor-man’s version of the Strokes like vocal style. Raspy Emo would be a good definition for this song. There is lots of moaning in the pseudo-chorus. But the instrumental section that follows is kinda nice. It is lead by a good melodic guitar hook, and the stop/start tempo really comes together…but we are then brought back to the Ra-speemo vocals which devolve into more moaning & female lyrics spoken in echo over top.
“Each Works” feels like a late 80’s British adult alternative band like the Trash Can Sinatras or UK wanna-be band The Ocean Blue. But the vocals trend back to Tim Casher of Cursive. The song is light, but complex, and tweaked with that oceanic clean/slick 80’s sound.
“Mona Lisa” brings the album back to loud guitars played in a start/stop whiny manner. The mood the guitars create is heavy and thick, sludgy with a hint of crispness. It has a dirty alternative feel.
“Brought To Life” is initiated with a light angelic mood with the jittery vocals and wispy music. Bombastic drums and crashing chords add a dense feel to the chorus, but the song quickly reverts to the ethereal mood. The song winds down into nothingness
“Reno” continues the haunting, melodic feel. It rocks side to side, with a sense that it is building to something bigger, alas; it gently lets you down, rather than fulfilling any sort of payoff hook. The vocals almost reach a Dogs Die In Hot Cars level of uniqueness, but the song, in general, never rises above mediocrity. The end rises in production, combining driving drums and crunching guitars, and urgent vocals, then as if all the energy is sapped, defeated vocals close out the album.

Stand Out Track: Heartbeat

Links:

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