Gretchen And the Pickpockets burn with true passion on debut album
It doesn’t take a brilliant music journalist like Lester Bands to know when a band is capable of becoming the next big thing. Out of the New Hampshire’s vibrant seacoast music scene, Gretchen And The Pickpockets create more urgency than a 2o alarm fire on their debut album. The most notable thing about this band is well constructed their songs are and how each part fits in with the whole to create vital music. If you’re not digging this band but the end of this album, check your pulse. You’re dead.
Freevolt offer fun, spirited ride on Take The Product album
The seacoast-based funky, ska, jam band Freevolt’s latest full length CD Take The Product is loaded with danceable, fun numbers that make one feel their tremendous ability for expression. Each song says a lot, their music being full of twists and turns, peaks and valleys, and just some good old fashioned clever hooks. There is a lot going on inside of Freevolt’s music and their enthusiasm can be felt as they make their listener appreciate their love of life, joy, and freedom.
The Lied To’s show huge potential on their debut album
The Lied To’s are a folk duo capable of becoming hugely familiar to listeners throughout New England. Susan Levine and Doug Kwartler formed this act after a significant period of transition for both singers. Their hard won experiences form the basis for their gritty, realistic lyrical material. Their unique blend of vocals and acoustic instruments create a lot of brittle, tender melodies and sweetly appealing harmonies. The due have a compact acoustic sound in each of their songs that pave the way for their unimposing but very likable voices to travel across.
Cold Engines are a fun ride on sophomore effort Take Me With You
Cold Engines’ sophomore release Take Me With You is even stronger than their recent debut Day Drinker. This band has certainly figured out how to make good hard rocking music that is catchy, infections, and fun while crafting respectably solid songs. Cold Engines can also mellow things out and create meaningful music that speaks to a listener loud and clear while the song maintains a quieter mood.
Nick Zaino reaches into folk territory with great success on Blue Skies And Broken Arrows album
Nick Zaino’s new album Blue Skies And Broken Arrows is a fine collection of witty, original folk songs. Zaino is definitely more of a folk artist than singer-songwriter, as he taps into deeply held American beliefs and cultural images, icons and ideas that assemble and resemble a national consciousness. His take on everything from bad relationships to alien invasion reveals a wit that can tie personal experiences into a journey into all of modern American life.
Fil Pacino proves a force to be reckoned with on Death By Lions album
Fil Pacino’s debut album Death By Lions is a good mix of full band rock and roll and singer-songwriter sensibility. A listener can rock out to the hefty band material on this album before mellowing out to Pacino’s gentler acoustic guitar driven folk stuff. In either approach, Pacino is at the top of his game. He has a lot to offer fans of different forms of music.
Dave Austin & The Sound will make a mark on Boston music scene with Revival album
Hub Band Dave Austin & The Sound is one of those bands that could become a big name act in greater-Boston, if they’re noticed and accepted by the right people. The right people are those who would like this fusion of classic rock and neo-hippie funk rock. So, you fans of classic rock and neo-hippie funk rock, and you know who you are, read up, then listen up. This band’s Revival album is actually good for you. Good for your health, good for your soul. Dig it.
Amy Kucharik masters early 20th century music idioms on her marvelous Cunning Folk album
Amy Kucharik’s debut full length CD Cunning Folk is delightful beyond what the word delightful could ever define. Listening to Cunning Folk makes one feel he’s just woken up inside the world of Jay Gatsby in the swinging 1920s. Kucharik has mastered the idioms and nuances of early American music so well that she completely immerses her listener in a lovelier, simpler time in history.
Girls Guns & Glory show the proper respect on fun filled tribute to Hank Williams
A killer album is a killer album no matter when and where it was recorded or who wrote the material recorded for it. Girls Guns & Glory latest CD is a live recording of a tribute show to Hank Williams, titled, simply enough, A Tribute To Hank Williams Live!
Bruce Mattson offers much gumbo fun on Crescent City Swagger CD
Bruce Mattson’s new, mostly instrumental, Crescent City Swagger CD is a fantastic gumbo mix of blues, stride, and Louisiana flavored music. Mattson and his band mates play a huge, polished sound on this album, and it’s very entertaining from beginning to end. Mattson’s piano work adds authentic New Orleans colors and tones to many things on this album, and that keeps it sounding different from anybody else in the local scene indulges in. He’s also a hell of a Hammond B3 organ player.
