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Texan Americana rockers Centro-matic and South San Gabriel are "brother bands," if you will, in that they are often vaguely indistinguishable. For instance, the core quartet of Centro-matic — Will Johnson, Mark Hedman, Scott Danbom, and Matt Pence — also make up the bulk of South San Gabriel. Another shared trait of the two groups is the name "South San Gabriel," which was used as one of Centro-matic's album titles before the group of the same name was eventually formed. If relations between the two groups have you about as confused as the particulars of Cletus the Slack-Jawed Yokel's family tree, Dual Hawks is here: a double-disc release featuring both bands that should clear up much of the mess for you.
Here, we have exhibit (or disc) A: eleven tracks from Centro-matic.
Centro-matic can safely be categorized among the likes of Pete Yorn, Wilco, Son Volt, and pals. They're what I like to call a borderline jamband, a Southern alt-country group with a good dose of '90s rock influence. Singer Will Johnson's vocals sound much like an early Pete Yorn in a slightly higher register, and a little less aloof. At times, Centro-matic plays uptempo alt-rock rhythms that bring to mind Matthew Sweet (see: "Strychnine, Breathless Ways") but without those ripping guitar solos. (Hey, we can't all have Richard Lloyd play on our albums.) In fact, there aren't too many high-profile solos on this record of any kind. Instrumentally, they're quite democratic. Each of the percussion tracks get just as much weight as the vocals as the rhythm guitar, and so on — an indication that there are no "stars" in this band, and it's intentionally so.
By the way, another influence heard in the most touching track on the Centro-matic disc, "Counting the Scars," is Neil Young, but perhaps it's difficult to write just about any heartfelt acoustic song without giving due credit to Mr. Young.
Lyrically speaking, Centro-matic steer a bit towards the melodramatic side of the road with an ever-present "I" or "you" or "we" involved — a sign of that '90s rock influence. "Strangled by the cellophane in the story of her life/ She got theirs and they got mine," sings Johnson in the opening lines of opening track "The Rat Patrol and DJs." Expect that cryptic lyricism from the rest of the album, too. "Don't you know it's your disaster now:" the refrain in "Two Seats Gold Reserved" might have been written as a personal call to awareness, but it may also be a reprimand to a certain politician that comes to mind.
If you'll turn your attention to exhibit (or disc) B: you'll hear twelve tracks from Centro-matic's more romantic kissin' cousin, South San Gabriel.
South San Gabriel, for many intents and purposes, sound very much like a sleepier, downtempo Centro-matic but with a few extra instruments involved. If you take away Centro-matic percussionist Joe Cripps and toss a handful of classical instrumentalists into the mix (including Matt Stoessel, Bryan VanDivier, Jeffrey Barnes, Buffi Jacobs, Tamara Cauble, David Pierce, and James Driscoll) you have South San Gabriel as they're known today. Of course, they're much more than that, too.
The second disc starts with a subtle, Dust Bowl, gringo-style acoustic line accompanied by long, smooth, baritone violin strokes. If you turn it up and close your eyes, you can hear the mourning before the first line of lyrics surfaces halfway through the song: "Emma Jane, I let you down." To Emma Jane, he sings, "But you're doing fine, you're doing fine," and by the second "fine," it becomes clear that he's really trying to talk himself out of his regrets. When one can say so much with so little — can pull a bow across strings as if pulling air from your very lungs — I believe they call that "art."
What makes South San Gabriel's music so beautiful, and effective, I believe, is the same reason that Edith Piaf was and is so adored and revered; it comes from their ability to convey intense sorrow through song. As Drive-By Truckers' frontman Patterson Hood told MOG in his recent interview with Faith-Ann Young, regarding South San Gabriel's contributions to Dual Hawks, "it may be one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've heard in a long, long time...absolutely jawdropping."
Those extra instruments also happen to make a huge difference. It's amazing what some classical strings, wind instruments and a pedal steel can do. Sprinkle on some post production filters and delay, and they're about one harp shy of a new set of wings.
The remaining eleven tracks following "Emma Jane" live up to the standard set with that first wrenching lament. Lyrically, they take us from regret ("Emma Jane") to despair ("When The Angels Will Put Out Their Lights") to questioning ("The Arc and the Cusp") to, yes, a mere sliver, but a pertinent slice of hope for this tortured soul's chance at love's rekindling ("From This I Will Awake").
Lead me to the promised land, please.
Dual Hawks, released in April of 2008 on BMI, was produced and recorded by Matt Pence at the Echo Lab in Denton, Texas. It can be previewed here and purchased here.
Ray LaMontagne is an artist with a "new sound" in the grand scheme of music today. Well, a new sound that consists of a cauldron full of "old sounds" — which seems to be a popular trend so far in century number twenty-one (see: Amy Winehouse, Madeleine Peyroux, Andrew Bird, Joss Stone, et al).
Q: Could you tell me how do you get to Radio City?
A: Practice, man, practice!
Gossip in the Grain is album number three for LaMontagne, and he’s already getting pretty big — big enough that I happened to see a giant pin-up of his fluffy mug gracing the side of Radio City Music Hall a few nights ago, where he will be performing soon.
But what’s it sound like?
LaMontagne has his own distinct voice that can sound as fresh as any other new artist topping the charts today, but it can also meld perfectly into a retro, vintage sound. It’s raspy yet super smooth with a wispy sort of intensity — comparable to that of Damien Rice or Chris Isaak or, dare I say it, Otis Redding — there’s definitely a Stax vibe. LaMontagne uses that voice to belt out some soul, R&B, blues, country, bluegrass, folk — sometimes all at once. The music on Gossip in the Grain may be a bit rounder around the edges than the rawer sounds of the blues and soul from which he borrows. That smoothness, however, is what gives LaMontagne’s music its modern feel despite all of the audible influences.
Similar to the Introducing Hanggai album that I reviewed a bit earlier, each song on Gossip in the Grain has a different theme and set of influences. Instead of a love song, a war ballad, and other folkloric songs like we heard from Hanggai, LaMontagne has composed a tracklisting that includes a romping Tom Waits-y tune called "Henry Nearly Killed Me (It’s a Shame)" complete with roadhouse/outlaw electric guitar track, harmonica, and sluggish heavy percussion — occasional handclaps and all; a tender, pedal steel-touting lament called "A Falling Through;" and a horn-filled energetic soul tune that opens the album, "You Are the Best Thing."
He can do that, too
With Gossip in the Grain, LaMontagne seems to be saying, "These are the genres I like, and this is what I can do with them." It comes as no surprise that the two folky tunes on the album each have apparent influences from two folk icons: Bob Dylan and Tim Buckley.
The rhythmic acoustic sway to "Sarah" was enough at first listen to make me do a double-take — add a string section and a demure vocalist singing distinguishable lyrics, and you have a recent incarnation of Blonde on Blonde’s "Fourth Time Around."
"Winter Birds" is a somber reflection on love as noticed in the nuances of the natural world, making it reminiscent of Tim Buckley not only in the tenor tremolo in LaMontagne’s voice, but also in content and dynamics. "We pass and greet each other as if old, old friends/ And to the voiceless trees it is their only road / The days grow short as the lights grow long," he sings summoning the curly-headed crooner from the afterlife.
LaMontagne shows that his influences are current as well as classic on the title track of the album, which sounds quite similar in vocals and tempo to material from friend and collaborator Damien Rice. "Meg White" — an ode to the White Stripes’ drummer — starts with a lone Wild West whistle, and then a staccato electric-guitar-as-rhythm note typical of the White Stripes, and even a Beatles-esque keyboard line in the back (also typical of the White Stripes).
A highlight for yours truly is the banjo-picking New Orleans-flavored creole bluesy tune, "Hey Me, Hey Mama." The only fault of the tune is that it’s maybe a bit tame considering the boot-stomping moonshine-slugging potential it has. Some tin-can percussion and that ripping harmonica we heard earlier on the album would have served this track well.
The verdict
If you’re into gritty, dirty, sweaty and/or noisy music that is likely to make little old ladies stick their fingers in their ears, and you couldn’t care less about tidy, clear production and rootsy Americana, Ray LaMontagne probably won’t excite you. But if you’ve ever found yourself getting into a Bob Dylan song, digging Van Morrison, humming along to Al Green, or getting down to some backyard blues — if you’ve ever blown a kazoo at Mardi Gras (and really liked it), then there’s something here for you.
You can catch Ray LaMontagne on his upcoming national tour with singer/songwriter Leona Naess (who can be heard lending her talents on Gossip in the Grain tracks "A Falling Through" and "I Still Care for You") starting September 30th. Gossip in the Grain is set to be released October 14th on RCA Records, and was produced by Ethan Johns.
Comments
That is a great review.
I'm syqued...
Been trying to get a listen to, "Meg White", but can't seem to find it anywhere.
Any tips?
Anyway, GOOD JOB!
BBD
At least on this cut he sounds a lot like David Gray... listening to "Till the Sun Turns Black" album right now... thanks for the heads up.
BBD--thank you, kindly. I don't know of anywhere you can hear "Meg White" yet, but maybe request that he stream that on his Myspace page. Otherwise you might have to wait a few weeks until the album is released. Fret not--October 14th will be here before you know it!
vannatta--yeah, I'm sure Gray is in that pool of influences, too. It definitely appeals to a particular audience.
You've probably read the news already that former Pink Floyd keyboardist Richard Wright has passed away in his home at the age of 65, having lost his battle with cancer. "Rick," as he was called in his earlier days--I've come to find out only in reading about his death--was a part of my personal teenage music revolution/revelation, and neither he nor I knew it at the time.
Wright, it turns out, wrote one of my Pink Floyd favorites, "Us and Them." (See, I would've guessed that Waters wrote that--I'm learning something new by the minute!) My familiarity with Pink Floyd and fondness for Wright's writing (I now know) dates back to the first time I excavated my mother's 99% terrible record collection. I was 15 and decided that my mother's infamously awful taste in music, statistically speaking, could not have been completely represented in a collection of 100+ records. After several minutes of pillaging and dusting, sneezing and guffawing, I found (quite literally) a diamond in the rough--one of the first ed. pressings of Dark Side of The Moon complete with posters and sticker sets, still wrapped in cellophane.
After a momentary lapse of muscle control, I informed (not asked, nor requested, mind you) but informed my mother that such an item would go completely to waste sitting in that old collection and that I would, in fact, be relocating the item into my own collection (about 6 records strong at that point), where it would get the love and attention it deserves.
"Oh, an old boyfriend of mine gave me that," she said, unnervingly unmoved. "I don't think I ever listened to it."
Hopeless, hopeless....but I still have that record, and the posters (now framed). The stickers are either lost for good or in a shoebox full of other goodies hiding somewhere in the dark disarray of my parents' house. I could well have gotten some good money out of that record ten years ago, but I didn't trust some unidentified purchaser to play it and appreciate it the way I knew it would be played on my turntable. So I kept it.
I've always considered Dark Side of the Moon to be a pinnacle of my collection--even as the collection has grown. And so to the man largely responsible for such an intergral turn of events in my young music-laden life, I thank you, Mr. Wright; happy trails and godspeed.
Comments
He produced some great music.. Like you,i know that album inside out.I think of it as a total "poprock" masterpiece .. Slightly too young to get into it at the time , i also aquired it "second-hand" , still got the stickers in the gatefold, unpeeled!
"Us and Them" is a timeless iconic track and the first one i think of when "DSOTM" gets mentioned...love it love love it!
he was actually involved in a lot of the "Darkside" writing as well as being a major feature in the sound development of the band dating all the way back to "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn". i've been meaning to buy the "Making of Dark Side of the Moon" DVD for awhile now. i guess today's a good day to do that.
sad.
Yes...the "George Harrison" of the group, so it seems.
That track up at the top of the post, by the way, is from the very record in question--converted from vinyl to mp3.
My Digital Music Collection
My Trusted MOGs (10 of 46)
MOG Meter
Comments
Thank you for this post.... your words, those lyrics and the amazing instrumentals... all true art...
most welcome--glad you dig it!