Gary Glauber
Reviews: September, 2004

Old 97's
Drag It Up

(New West)

Release Date: July 27, 2004

www.old97s.com

After several years apart on hiatus, the good news is that the band is back. With Drag It Up, their sixth studio album, the Texas-based foursome has returned to their alt-country roots in a big way. The overall feel is comfortable, relaxed and casual, which makes sense - these four have been good friends, working together as a unit since 1993.

They remain a very tight band - Rhett Miller (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Ken Bethea (lead guitar, accordion), Murry Hammond (bass, backing vocals, guitar) and Philip Peeples (drums, shakers and tambourines).

The time apart has made their reunion all the more fun -- you get a true sense of collaboration, with far fewer bells and whistles to get in the way of things. Drag It Up is an intentional return to the rougher edges that became the band's signature sound on earlier releases. The whole album (for their new label) was recorded on eight tracks, a welcome step backward from the oft-times overly slick production values and pop-rock leanings of Satellite Rides (and Rhett Miller's solo CD The Instigator).

This effort is a return to the lovably eclectic variety of sounds that comprise an Old 97's record - a mix of bluegrass, surf, country, rock, folk and even occasional psychedelia. Lead guitarist Ken Bethea does a great job describing the content here: "We sang about satellites, stars, moonlight, cavities, death, cheating, Texas, friendship, parenthood, God and storms."

There are a wide variety of songs here, some of which really grow on you with repeated listens. The sense again is that of a band working well together - there's a true sense of live performance in some local venue - even though the smoke-filled bar is not provided. There's an intimacy to it - a sense that this one is personal, a return to form to show up those disbelievers who wrote them off as too slick and not likely to ever get back together again.

The CD opens with "Won't Be Home," an archetypal Old 97's country rock tune. The intelligent Miller has a wonderful way with lyrics (I forgive him the occasional cliché), and a natural ability to create instantly memorable sing-a-long choruses. Here his lyrical abilities are on full display from the opening "You're a bottle-cap away from pushing me too far / well the problem's getting big and it's a compact car" to the chorus' confession "I was born in the backseat of a Mustang on a cold night in a hard rain / and the very first song that the radio sang was I Won't Be Home No More." He shoves his problem passenger out the door and she becomes a mere thought, as she gets smaller in his rearview mirror.

"Moonlight" is a pleasant little tale of remembered abandonment ("she left me alone in every way") brought on by the very same moonlight: "Now I'm alone and I'm at large / What kind of fool puts me in charge / God, it's a lonely way I'm living these days." IT features some fine pedal-steel from Chris Lawrence.

Archie Thompson provides some piano accompaniment on the affably charming "Borrowed Bride." Here our beleaguered narrator has won the affections of a very popular woman and must suffer silently the fact that she remains popular even after that fact (perhaps it isn't a victory after all). Again, as Miller notes that "life comes apart at the seams, it seems," he achieves some nice lyrical turns: "The hat on your head, the ghosts before breakfast / the lump in your throat, the name on her necklace / She's certain she'll never be caught / you can buy her things now but she'll never be bought."

Murry Hammond gets a turn singing on "Smokers" (and he's got a fine voice too). Here's the tale of a smoker sitting up waiting and drinking for some woman singer who never arrives. Ken Bethea's guitar rumbles and buzzes through this track, giving it plenty of atmospheric support.

It's Bethea's turn to take lead vocals on the silly romp "Coahuila" (his voice doesn't measure up to Hammond's or Miller's, but it's not unpleasant). A lonely, indecisive dreamer with plenty of rules ("I don't do love, I don't do women named Hannah") sits microwaving his chicken ravioli while dreaming about a "brown-haired girl and her tequila."

The weepy country ballad "Blinding Sheets of Rain" (again, more lovely pedal steel from Mr. Lawrence) is another classic tune about a man done wrong. His girl is gone and it's raining and he blames the rain for blinding him to the fact that she would leave. It's a pretty song - but fairly typical country fare.

"Valium Waltz," a beautiful ballad of a song that's been around for years finally has made its way onto disc. Here it's captured as a moody vignette piece (with traces of psychedelia), a slow-paced observation of the daughter of the mayor of Marble Falls as she "winds up in Dentontown doing the Valium waltz."

Hammond and Miller share vocal duties on a song whose title recalls the band's most recent studio release "In The Satellite Rides A Star." This laid-back twanger is another pleasant bit of reminiscing about a woman who has gone on, left the small town, rolling on like some satellite. The song is simple but powerful - again, reflecting the quiet virtues of these four friends working well together.

Another Hammond/Miller collaboration, "The New Kid" shoots immediately right up alongside any of your Old 97's favorites, an amicable reflection on the how any one of us is (sadly) replaceable. This "new kid" has the money and usurps the working stiff: "The new kid he's got my girl / the girl I used to have / he's got the looks you know / got them from his Dad / I should be kissing that girl / we should be so in love / There is no justice, there's just dark stars above."

"Bloomington" is a sweet old-fashioned mid-tempo love song to a woman forever identified by a place ("she drove a blue car around Bloomington") who had a magical way of unfolding herself that shall live forever in his mind.

This band always has been able to render simple songs in a gorgeous manner - that's the case with the somber meditation that is "Adelaide." Acoustic guitars, emotive vocals and harmonies convey this moving song about a past love filtered through mental health issues: "Heaven I need a rest / I recognized the voices talking in my head / I couldn't make out everything the voices said / Loving you is a test."

The inner nerd of Rhett Miller is given the spotlight in "Friends Forever." Similar in spirit to some songs found on his solo album, it's interesting to hear what the band has done to accompany him (as opposed to what was done by the one-man band that is producer Jon Brion). His compadres keep it fairly straightforward and rocking in that alt-country mode, as Miller examines the hardships of high school and astutely notes, "the twelve years after five are years we're lucky to survive." Here the chess club brainiac refutes the notion that being smart is a bad thing: "I was a debater / was not a stoner nor an inline skater / I was just a bookworm on a respirator / who's to say that's wrong."

The album closes on a serious note with the touching "No Mother," dedicated to the memory of "Handsome" Joel Svater, senselessly killed by a drunk driver in January of 2003. Bethea's accordion and the whole band's backing vocals enhance this quiet and haunting ballad.

With 13 songs that last over 48 minutes, Drag It Up serves up a lot of new music. While some might quibble over the fact that not every song here is stellar, there are plenty of highlights to keep fans happy. Overall, what you hear is that The Old 97's have come back together after growing a bit separately - reunited as one big happy musical family once again. During the time apart, several band members either got married and/or had kids, extending the metaphor further.

This band once started out playing small country and rock bars in Dallas for nothing more than tips, beer and the occasional barbecue sandwich. Back then, it was all about the music and thankfully, after all these years, it still remains the same. Eight tracks per song are more than enough if the band is tight and the feelings are real. The Old 97's prove that over and over on Drag It Up -- a return to form for this country-flavored family of a band, a family we hope continues to grow for years to come.

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A.C. Newman
The Slow Wonder

(Matador Records)

Release Date: June 8, 2004

www.matadorrecords.com

On his first official "solo" album, A.C. Newman delivers the goods - an uncanny knack for quirky, infectious riffs that surprise and delight, expertly arranged to deliver eclectic lyrics and a variety of moods through the universal language of melodic pop. This short and sweet collection comes as no surprise, considering the pedigree behind it - Newman is the same Carl Newman known for his excellent work first with Zumpano, then later with New Pornographers.

Similar to Newman's previous efforts, the songs are infectious, witty and engaging - yet here they are stripped down to basic instrumentation, giving voice to a lean, spacious economy that serves up muscular yet intimate hook-filled tunes that never linger too long. The redhead's voice is emotive, his phrasings imaginative, and the use of harmonies spare and beautiful (Sarah Wheeler expertly delivers the extra vocals here, assuming the parts that might be ascribed to Neko Case were this a New Pornographers offering).

A host of different musicians lend a hand to this record (Fisher Rose and Pete Bourne on drums, Shane Nelken on piano and autoharp, Megan Bradfield on cello, Shaun Brodie on trumpet, John Collins on bass and Dave Carswell on ebow guitar), which was funded in part by the government of Canada through the Canada Music Fund. Carswell and Collins collaborated with Newman on production duties as well.

There's no fat here, every spare arrangement is calculated to the second for great effect. *The Slow Wonder* opens with the out-and-out catchy "Miracle Drug" with its rat-a-tat drums and stammered guitar chords, and amusingly cryptic lyrics. Best I can figure, it's all about the difficulties of living this modern life (or perhaps not). For instance: "He was tied to the bed with a miracle drug in one hand / In the other, a great lost novel that I understand was returned with a stamp that said / Thank you for your interest, young man." The chorus, which screams "So why all the history now?" does so in perfect Beatle-esque fashion.

Newman manages to take a sadly languid song and makes it sound almost cheery with "Drink To Me, Babe, Then." This start-stop rhythm relates poetic lyrics of a failed relationship where both parties know the score: "Now it's come home, held on, held the truth / Like a threat to point-blank eyes as proof / You were too shy to lie to / We're offended, shocked our plan would fail / now you've wandered farther from the trail / On a landslide, you ride in." Whistling over melodion makes for an engaging musical hook here.

"On The Table" is another masterful off-kilter pop gem that manages to take the phrase "Do Re Mi - Innocent" and fill it with important meaning. It's a censure of the justice system masquerading as an upbeat melody: "On the table, our hopes become a starting pistol / though we have missed all the minutes, we know what we've won / Are we done? / On the table, the deal between the legs of mankind / Walking a straight line, copping a plea as they went - innocent."

"Most Of Us Prizefighters" lumbers ahead, taking big roomy steps as it proclaims how even the biggest fighting heroes will fall for fashion. Newman takes great liberties with his phrasings here, chopping up lines for the sake of the song's rhythm.

There's a serious tone to "The Battle For Straight Time," an examination of the difficulty of sticking to noble and heroic thoughts and actions: "my pure gone days, every morning an about face." Highlights here include the chorus' harmonies, and a sweet coda of echoed guitars.

One of my favorite tunes here is the ultra-catchy yet unassumingly upbeat "Secretarial."
This wordy tune is sophisticated and somewhat eclectic - you can't take them out with baby artillery - but in the end, it's just secretarial: "One day you blew across the water after racing through the countdown / spewing ancient wisdom like your friend the revelation had come / and they were looking for me / I took the red-eye back to glory, but the more I got the facts straight / it turns out that the story's getting shorter, and what I want to know is: will it happen to me?"

There's a real sweet emotional beauty to the haunting mid-tempo "Come Crash." Two people survive a wreck that should have killed them, come together as friends but nothing beyond that - and in the end, it is enough that he makes the offer for her to come crash on his floor. Shaun Brodie's trumpet makes it all the more poignant.

Newman turns bitter in "Better Than Most," where the guitars turn up the reverb a bit.

"The Cloud Prayer" is piano-driven, featuring delicious harmonies and horns galore, a dark and personal confession examining another relationship not working well at all, where all his attempts to impress went unnoticed, virtually unknown.

Megan Bradfield's cello dominates "The Town Halo," though Shane Nelken's piano comes in a close second. This wonderful tune sends up a friend ("our own girl Jesus") who has found new spiritual and religious heights as said "halo." Newman is on his game lyrically - sharp and acerbic in his assessment of this dearly loved one: "Up through the crystal / raised on mythology / she winds her way from truth to apology / topless in new wings / free for the taking / and miles away, a foundation shaking for you."

The album closes with the frenetic "35 In The Shade, " a galloping romp wherein Newman does battle with Cleopatra and her tricks and winds up missing his ride. Lots of piano and drums propel the action, but ultimately the cellos and the ebow guitar lead are what capture your attention (along with slight shades of ELO in the harmony call of "Game on!").

A gong sounds to end the album, which clocks in at a very lean 33-and-a-half minutes.

The Slow Wonder is a modern musical paradox - cold and calculating at times, yet warm and emotionally honest at others. There are hints of baroque pop arrangements, and some will hear kindred sounds to the likes of The Shins or Guided By Voices (and of course New Pornographers). It holds up well to repeated listens, wherein the quirks and odd phrasings become more familiar and the hooks more sublime. All told, it's a solid personal offering from a very talented man and prolific songwriter, one that rates right up among the year's best releases.

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Fastball
Keep Your Wig On

(Rykodisc)

Release Date: June 8, 2004

www.fastballmusic.com

Is there life after a hit single?

It doesn't seem so long ago when Fastball scored a major hit with 1998's "The Way." The song's popularity and wide radio coverage propelled their album All The Pain Money Can Buy into the rarified platinum realm. The talented Austin, Texas-based trio followed it up with the critically lauded The Harsh Light of Day in 2000. By that time, radio had gone the way of boy bands and such. Sadly, Fastball didn't really register any sort of commercial success with their follow-up, in spite of releasing an album full of good music.

It has been a long four years awaiting further word, but the great news is that Fastball has returned on a new label (Rykodisc) and in grand fashion. The shame of it is that this one won't likely get much radio play either - so it's up to fans of the band to spread the good word around. Keep Your Wig On features twelve new songs and just might be their best release yet.

With two talented songwriters in Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga, the band's music remains familiar, yet fresh. These two multi-instrumentalists play keyboards and guitars (and both sing), while Joey Shuffield handles drums. A number of other folks help from track to track, most notably Jeff Groves on saxophone (who now is listed as an official Fastball member on the website).

Fastball retains a real knack for pleasantly melodic pop/rock mixed with a sort of controlled "garage" sound - it's very easy on the ears. I used to be more partial to Scalzo's songs on past albums, but with this new collection, I now enjoy both songwriters' songs equally (plus they've taken to writing more songs together).

Overall, Zuniga really has grown as a songwriter (and seems to have been the more prolific writer in recent years) and the band has teamed with some talented producers on this new release. Mike McCarthy (who has worked with Spoon) helped with a majority of the songs here, while Fountain Of Wayne's Adam Schlessinger produced a pair as well, and popmeister extraordinaire Bob Clearmountain did the mixing.

Keep Your Wig On leads off with a short (just over a minute) Zuniga prelude on piano entitled "Shortwave," all about finding, then losing, strange music from the BBC via shortwave.

The likely single choice is the exuberant "Lou-ee, Lou-ee," (no real relation to the famous oft-recorded Richard Berry composition), a collaborative effort between Fastball's two songwriters. The lyrics are far from profound (it's about waiting in various forms), but the guitars, harmonies and drums should have you up and about and the chorus is plenty easy for instant sing-alongs.

The first Scalzo song here is the enchanting "Drifting Away," employing that great voice in confessing his love-tinged confusion in matters of the heart and soul: "Are you the girl I'm thinkin' of / Right in the middle of hate and love / An iron fist in a velvet glove." It's another winner of a song, and features some fine lead guitar courtesy of Zuniga.

Zuniga proves his songwriting mettle with "Airstream" (co-written with NRBQ's Al Anderson). This is a great infectious song, emotive vocals pining for that big chrome RV life, far away from the crowded rabble: "Free, I don't wanna be stuck in the city / With the cars and people downtown / Waiting in a line / Wishing I was far away / Where no one knows my name / Or my address, it's a place I've never been / When it gets too familiar I'll be gone."

"I Get High" shows what good things happen when Fastball lets Scalzo take to the piano and B-3 organ. It's a bit of a smoky bar-type blues lament, Scalzo singing about never getting his way, getting high and forgetting about it all.

Miles Z. goes into Wallflower mode with "Perfect World," a pleasant guitar-driven ballad that features an impressive harmonica lead by Matt Hubbard. This is a musical complaint about a closet complainer from a friend who offers sound advice: "There's always something wrong in your perfect world / Nobody's gonna solve your problems / It all comes down to you / I know you think there's a conspiracy to keep you down / It's all in your head / You gotta learn to shut it out / It's true."

Another fine collaboration is the rough-edged bounce of "'Til I Get It Right," a breezy song about hanging in bars, feeling down, listening to music and trying to screw up the courage to approach the woman who has jilted him for another: "And then they play that song I love / And I feel like I just can't lose / I feel like I should call you up / But I'll stay here all night / 'Til I get it right." Jeff Groves' saxophone is a real star performer on this track.

Fastball tries a bit of a different vocal tact on "Our Misunderstanding." On the verses, the two voices sing an octave apart (in true Squeeze Difford-Tilbrook fashion), while the chorus bursts into sweet harmony. The lyrical fare is relationship turbulence, an escalation of painful miscommunication that leads to ugliness: "It's sad that our misunderstanding / Has turned into a war / I don't know you anymore, anymore / And our love got lost in the translation / And when I see you out / You're a stranger to me now."
In the end, it's another fine tune.

"Someday" is a mid-tempo guitar ballad enhanced by Schlessinger's production wizardry. Kevin Lovejoy's keyboards add a psychedelic flavor to this song about assuring a stranger that one day she'll be free.

Some fine pedal steel (courtesy of Louis Jay Myers) gives the twangy "Mercenary Girl" a bona fide country pedigree (while the barrelhouse piano of Kevin Lovejoy and Kevin McKinney's lead guitar provide additional fun), as Fastball takes on a new style admirably well.

One of my favorites here is the poignant ballad "Falling Upstairs." At times, it seems a slowed down "The Way." Scalzo's lead vocals are primo, his piano superb, his vibes the perfect accent - and Zuniga's backing harmonies and lead guitar match up to those perfectly. This is Fastball at its best - a perfect song of its kind - sad and poetic in its way of showing that things aren't always what they seem: "You came to me from a secret place / You're beautiful and strange to me / Just like an antique melody / Too sad for me to play."

The album closes in grand upbeat fashion with the uber-catchy "Red Light." Here, Adam Schlessinger opts for Mexican horn accompaniment, heavy reverb on the upfront vocals, requisite Mellancamp-type handclaps on the chorus and even some Kevin Lovejoy accordion solo, while Shuffield helms it all with his fine drumming. He's done a great job of harnessing that magical Fastball fun -- if you don't smile hearing this, you're made of stone.

Keep Your Wig On serves up a casual, relaxed sound - yet there's a wonderful confidence behind every musical moment. This tight band enjoys playing -- and you hear it in each and every track. Tons of references abound in the music (e.g., the intro to one song is pretty much the same musical lead-in as that to the Beatles "Fixing A Hole") as well as in some lyrical phrasings (e.g. "hit the city and I lost…" "diamond star halo") - heck, they even make reference to their own past hits.

Removed from the pressures of the commercial marketplace, the ultra-talented men of Fastball prove there is life beyond that monster hit single - and from the sounds of it, a very good life indeed. Keep Your Wig On is an extremely solid collection from a trio that surely deserves another ride to the top someday soon.

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John Hoskinson
Miscellaneous Heathen

(Kaopeoths)

Release Date: July 30, 2004

www.johnhoskinson.com

If, like me, you agree there's a place in the world for intelligent folk-rock, let me direct you to the wonderful debut album from John Hoskinson, Miscellaneous Heathen. Hoskinson is a bit of a throwback to the kind of classic love-songwriting you heard decades ago - complete with strong melodies expressed through clean, dulcet arrangements.

Together with Joe Ongie, Hoskinson has produced a set of eleven winners. He's not afraid of quiet musical moments, nor does he shy away from optimistic lyrics now and again. He has a warm, friendly voice that's easy on the ears - expressive and somehow familiar. While Hoskinson plays many instruments (guitar, piano, bass and then some), he surrounds himself with a talented ensemble of musical friends, including Mike "Soupy" sessa on drums and Eugene Edwards and Bob Breen on additional guitars.

The album opens with the upbeat piano-driven "I Hope I Die Before You Do," less a grim death wish than a cute celebration of a love where one can't imagine going on without the other. The vocals on this track remind me a bit of Cliff Eberhardt. It features some fine lead guitar from Eugene Edwards and an obscure reference to the Swedish founder of Swanson's TV Dinners.

The mid-tempo ballad "Thanks For Nothing" hearkens back to another era, the music recalling some lazy sunny summer afternoon of yore. Here the singer is sincerely thanking a woman for giving him nothing - somehow her lack of a response saved him, made everything fall right into place. There are some wonderful vocal harmonies, fine Bob Breen guitar, and a superbly haunting piano coda at song's end.

"I Belong To You" seems a distant musical relative of McCartney's "Got To Get You Into My Life," with its guitar and horn arrangements (Dan Clucas lends some quality trumpets). Hoskinson takes a simple love song and makes it more with some great touches (on bass and guitar and piano).

"Waiting For Someone To Call" at times also recalls musical aspects of "Got To Get You Into My Life," complete with great horns (and a fine guitar lead by Mr. Edwards). It's a precious little ditty about climbing the walls with loneliness, waiting for help, a friend, a call, something.

One of my favorites here is the gorgeous "It's Not My Place." This lovely lament of a friend's inability to speak to another's oncoming train wreck is chock full of poignant observation: "It's your latest crusade / An endless parade of skeletons and bad decisions / Want to pull you aside / So I can confide you're headed for a big collision / But I guess it's not my place / So I stand silent / On the floor that hits your face / The solution may seem clear / From over here / But I guess it's not my place." Peter Miller does an excellent job of performing David Walsh's cello arrangement on this quiet jewel of a song.

The accomplished acoustic guitar introduction to "Uncharacteristic (it must be you)" reminds me of Jason Falkner's "Both Belong." This sweet folk song is about a man in love who veers between optimist and pessimist, but believes any uncharacteristic behavior must be due to this love. Again, Dan Clucas provides some great horns.

If there's any doubt about the talents of Hoskinson, listen to the sweet aural beauty of "When She Speaks." Here John plays it all, quite masterfully, whilst bemoaning the maddening fact of how his woman "always has a way out."

Further evidence is found on "Going Nowhere." Again, Hoskinson does it all save for Mike Sessa's drums. This is a mellow track about the awkward aftermath following a lover's indiscretion, and features some sweet chorus harmonies as well as a unique instrumental middle lead (cello, clarinet and mandolin voices mixed together on a mellotron).

"She Still Plays Around" is an upbeat rocker, with shades of Rick Springfield in the last verse. This dilemma in song ponders a friend who finds himself in an extremely awkward situation: "My friend's got a new girl / Talks about her all of the time / Never seen him so happy / He can't wait 'til she meets me / One day introduction / Instant recognition / Bite my tongue and I wonder / Should I tell him about her?"

Originally intended to be the title track for an independent movie (that never got finished, alas), the pretty "It's Like Cigarettes" showcases poignant lyrics written by Shelly Frasier (John's wife): "It's like cigarettes / There's no point - don't I know / Nothing ever comes to rest / Until you let it go."

The collaboration between husband and wife for the closing track provides some of the best lyrics on the album. "Time Will Tell" speaks to how the future concedes to history: "She cannot seem / To make herself want to care at all / She's frozen stiff / Can't stop the fall / He built himself a prison cell / He can't conceive / Difference between / His want and need / Time will tell / Your ship may steer itself / To accidental wealth / I wish you well." Here Bob Breen distinguishes himself on guitar and drums, with Sarah Walsh on bass and David Walsh contributing backing vocals. The track is one of quiet dignity.

John Hoskinson arrives as a mature songwriter from the get-go; a quiet force that deserves a following. He's got a strong sense of melody, can write the classic middle bridge and (with Joe Ongie) presents intricate arrangements that mixes instruments with precision and care.

Miscellaneous Heathen is a most auspicious debut from an artful and talented newcomer specializing in smart, sensitive songs that fit the classic three-to-four minute mold.

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