ALBUM REVIEWS
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ALBUM REVIEWS |
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Centro-matic / South San Gabriel
DUAL HAWKS COOKING VINYL 7.04.08 @www.vanguard-online.co.uk The sheer volume of music available to us these days is quite staggering. For me this raises a bunch of perplexing questions. Is there a point where you can have ‘enough’ music? Why do some people listen to such dross, when there really is so much fantastic music around? Am I missing out on something really awe-inspiring just because I haven’t heard it? Even if you do really like a particular band or genre – can you have too much of a good thing? Centro-matic are a case in point for the last question. Now I do love a bit of Americana/Alt-Country or whatever you want to call it; but I couldn’t listen to only that type of music all the time. This is their 10th album after a decade of recorded output; and the brainchild behind Centro-matic, chief singer-songwriter Will Johnson also has a splinter group called South San Gabriel. They’re basically the core members of Centro-matic plus some additional musicians and friends. The spin-off group have also released two previous albums; and Johnson himself has also put out a couple of solo efforts. Now does anyone really need or have time to listen to fourteen albums by any artist? To ram the point home, this new release is actually a double album. With this double header each band has one album both with the same title, but with different songs. Quite a nifty idea I thought. Remarkably both bands have their own distinct style. Centro-matic offer blues tinged country rock - think ‘Being There’ era Wilco before they went fantastically experimental. The standout tracks on their offering are ‘Quality Strange’ – all jabbed guitar riffs, whoo-hoo’s and lyrics about being stuck in a rut and being unable to change things. ‘Twenty-Four’ is a joyous paean to trying to retain the vigour and attitude of youthfulness. ‘Counting the Scars’ is a more toned down affair compared to most of the rollicking stompers on the rest of the album; and gives a hint as to what’s to come on the spin-off band’s album. There’s an unrefined rawness about the recording that sounds great – you can hear the squeak of fingers moving along guitar strings, and the crackle and hum of the amps when the instruments fade out. No bad thing as far as I’m concerned. Some of the tracks can feel a bit ‘throwaway’ – like they could bang some of this stuff out on a coffee break in between the more expansive stuff. But this can also be quite endearing. South San Gabriel offer a much more downbeat but somehow more emotive experience. The overall feel is much more sombre in tone but repeated listening pulls you into the hushed realms of Will Johnson’s understated talent. The opening track ‘Emma Jane’ is gorgeous. Melancholic acoustic strumming and picking are paired with sumptuous strings, and you think it’s an instrumental (which would be just fine as the music is beautiful) But then around halfway in Johnson’s vocals gently croak into play. The track is thus lifted to stunning status. Other highlights are ‘Senselessly’ – and although it’s no great variation in style to any other track on the album, who needs variety when the music is as breathtakingly lovely as this? Sample lyric – ‘The monsters in your heart are feeding off your stomach now’ – perhaps not an album to get your party swinging. ‘Alabama Crusade’ is another acoustic/strings wonder with almost whispered vocals – Johnson has a similar tranquil tone to that of Will Oldham/Palace Brothers/Bonnie Prince Billy. But it’s actually very difficult to pick standout tracks as the whole album has a modest quality about it which engrosses the listener. If you wanted to check out these bands then this new double album would be a great place to start. If you wanted to then explore their back catalogues then there may be some strain on your wallet and your listening stamina. www.centro-matic.com |