Listening for The Tin Hearts

There is something magical about the mixture of folk, country and blues.   Something hardscrabble, dusty and soulful.  Call it Americana or alt.country or whatever.  It is the music of my home, my youth and my continued passion. 

Not surprising, I count My Morning Jacket, The Felice Brothers and Wilco as guideposts for my fervor.  Mix in some Blitzen Trapper, Band of Horses, Hayes Carll and some Ryan Adams and you have a well-rounded playlist of modern Americana. 

It is time to add another to the list.  The Tin Hearts, based out of Columbus, Ohio, is a welcome addition to the club.   

The tight, five-piece band plays honest, hard-working music that will keep the honky tonk lights burning until dawn. However, it is Matthew Sullivan's gritty vocals and harmonica work that make the band stand out.  Like the aforementioned bands, The Tin Hearts possess a rollicking honesty that will take them far. 

After releasing their self-titled debut album last year, The Tin Hearts will release their second album, "No Good Deed," on Singing Moon Records on September 10th.  I can not wait to hear more from this up-and-coming band of musicians. 

“Times Like These” by The Tin Hearts (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Heading Out with The Avett Brothers

It has been said that there are only two stories - a stranger comes to town and someone goes on a journey.

With The Avett Brothers' major label debut, I and Love and You, the boys take the latter. Actually, there are multiple journeys. The engaging album mines the familiar territory of documenting the journeys contained in romance and relationships. A topic that takes full use of the brothers' harmonies and orchestrations.

But, there is more going on here.

The album also represents the band's current journey from its North Carolina roots to a much wider audience. From its bluegrass beginnings to its new mixture of pop/alternative folk. To put it simply, less banjo, more piano and strings. And the piano is not a rootsy Garth Hudson, but more like fellow Tar Heel Ben Folds' hard-driving piano.

However, there is still a trace of the band's bluegrass background. The disc's second track, January Wedding, is a beautiful banjo stroll. But make no mistake, The Avett Brothers are no longer a bluegrass band.

A large part of this musical advancement coincides with the group's jump to Sony and the accompanying Rick Rubin production. The album is, at times, beautiful. The harmonies soar. The strings rise and fall. There is definitively a sheen with this bunch. Not much of the grittiness that helps define other hirsute harmony fanatics, such as Fleet Foxes and Blitzen Trapper.

That is not a complaint. The album has been on a steady rotation in my house for weeks and it will be there awhile.

Perhaps the best song of the album, or even in the group's burgeoning career, is the opening title track - an anthem about "heading north" (another journey!) and out into the world. The chorus is impossible to resist. Nor do you want to.

The Avett Brothers head out on the road at the beginning of the year. No Florida dates yet.

“I and Love and You” by The Avett Brothers (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Eight Favs in '08

Officially dubbed the "Year of the Beard," 2008 was a very good year for the facially hirsute. 

Whether it was the hippie-looking dudes from the Northwest, the brothers from the Caskills or the farm boys from Kentucky, it was a good year for alt. country, americana, roots or whatever you want to call it, music.  When a lot of big name performers (Beck, Conor Oberst, Death Cab, Kings of Leon) dropped solid but not exceptional albums this year, these stylistic children of Neil Young and Gram Parsons put together some very gritty, funky and often beautiful music. And they all had beards.

Eschewing the traditional Top 10 format, I have opted for eight favorite albums for the past year. Eight, some which may not be the best of 2008, but eight which dove a little bit deeper and grabbed a piece of me.  

The Felice Brothers - The Felice Brothers - Team Love Records

Simone, Ian and James Felice's sophomore effort is, at times, sloppy and uneven. But it is always pure. The boys' updated Big Pink sound is full of swagger, remorse and Appalachian gothic. The album is full of impassioned tales of murder, heartbreak and drug-running from the New Rural America. Gritty songs about the gritty times that don't show up on the cable channels.

Download: Frankie’s Gun by The Felice Brothers

(mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes - Sub Pop Records

The harmonies. The sweet, soaring harmonies within this Seattle five-piece's debut album are show-stopping. The Fleet Foxes have have created an endlessly enjoyable album.

Download: White Winter Hymnal by Fleet Foxes (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue - Warner Brothers Records

With her world-weary voice, Jenny Lewis's Acid Tongue is quickly becoming the iconic record of the new laid-back Laurel Canyon scene in southern California. It is a well-deserved adulation.  You can hear the miles travelled in her voice. 

Download: Acid Tongue by Jenny Lewis (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Randy Newman - Harps and Angels - Nonesuch Records

With Harps and Angels, Randy Newman returns to his quirky, brilliant brand of songwriting, which made him a cult favorite before he ventured into movie soundtracks. Newman uses the honky-tonk piano from his native New Orleans to weave stories of betrayal, bemusement and loss.  The fact that this album prompted a personal return to Newman's extensive catalogue make this album worthy of this list. 

Download: A Few Words In Defense of Our Country by Randy Newman (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Blitzen Trapper - Furr - Sub Pop Records

In their first album for Sub Pop, Portland heroes, Blitzen Trapper, have built on their experimental folk bona fides to extend the country rock reaches originally marked by Buffalo Springfield and The Byrds.  The boys add a post-modern vibe to their evolving sound and ended up creating a memorable disk. 

Download: Furr by Blitzen Trapper (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

The Whigs - Mission Control - ATO Records

With a thundering bass drum line, this Athens, Georgia trio creates great college indie music from the bottom up.  Listening to The Whigs, you'll be able to pick up more than a little bit of the Replacements and even a whiff of early R.E.M.  What you will find live are three very talented musicians rocking very hard.  And that is a very good thing. 

Download: Right Hand On My Heart by The Whigs (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend - XL Records

I love the fact that Vampire Weekend plays exactly what is advertised - a preppy, new wave-ish look at African guitar pop.  A fresh and totally infectious sound.  I found myself humming the album - the entire album - for days on end. 

Download: Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa by Vampire Weekend (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges - ATO Records

Jim James' exploration into funk with a Prince-like falsetto on Evil Urges wasn't the breakout album, a la Joshua Tree, like many predicted. However, it was a moody and rollicking jam by the best live band currently working the circuit.  A great album by one of today's great bands. 

Download: Evil Urges by My Morning Jacket (mp3)(iTunes)(Amazon)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

AHers Duncan Strauss, Ian Minor and myself will be co-hosting Duncan's Sonic Detour radio show from 4 to 6 p.m. on New Year's Eve on WMNF. Mark your calender and listen here.