The Third Mind 2 Yep Roc
'I had this crazy idea and was looking for musicians who perhaps didn't think it was so insane,' explains Dave Alvin on the formation of The Third Mind. Fascinated by the free-form recording techniques that Miles Davis and his producer Ted Macero used to craft Davis’ classic albums BITCHES BREW and JACK JOHNSON, Alvin's vision was to hand pick some great players, jam live in the studio for several days and edit the recordings to produce an album.
The vision became a reality in 2018 when Alvin pitched the idea to long-time acquaintance and former Camper Van Beethoven bass player Victor Krummenacher, who was supportive of the concept, having previously covered some of Grateful Dead's material when he was a member of the band Cracker. On Krummenacher's recommendation, guitarist and his long-time bandmate David Immergluck (Cracker, John Hiatt, Counting Crows, Camper Van Beethoven) came on board, followed by former John Cale and Richard Thompson drummer Michael Jerome. With three accomplished vocalists, Alvin, Krummenacher and Immergluck, committed, the recruitment exercise may have ended there. Not so, and the icing on the cake was when vocalist and songwriter Jesse Sykes ('she sings like Sandy Denny meets Grace Slick' to quote Alvin) was approached and duly accepted the role as lead vocalist. They entered the studio without rehearsals or written arrangements and started jamming on some Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Roky Ericksen tracks. Out of these sessions, their debut 2020 self-titled album was born.
THE THIRD MIND 2 reproduces the absorbing formula of that debut album with a running time of forty-six minutes covering six tracks. The opener is an eight-minute plus reconstruction of The Electric Flag's Groovin' Is Easy. Sally Go Round The Roses, a 1963 one-hit wonder all-girl group, The Jaynetts, is a multi-coloured psychedelic trip that hits the eleven-minute mark. Gene Clark's country rock classic Why Not Your Baby gets a sympathetic makeover without straying too far from the drenched emotion of the original, and they include one original track, Tall Trees. A melancholic love song written in the studio by Alvin and Sykes one afternoon, the angelic and edgy pureness of Sykes’ vocals are interrupted mid-song by a sonic explosion of screeching guitars and masterful drumming.
Completing the half-dozen tracks is a compassionate rendition of Fred Neil's A Little Bit Of Rain and a bluesy take on Paul Butterfield's In My Own Dream.
More than a sum of its parts and never descending into self-indulgence, THE THIRD MIND 2 works on many levels. Oscillating between cosmic alt-country and psychedelic blues, it ticks the boxes for lovers of extended and Grateful Dead-like trippy solos, as well as the haunting and unique vocals of Jesse Sykes. A marriage made in heaven.
Review by Declan Culliton
Daniel Donato Reflector Retrace
Nashville native Daniel Donato’s performing career kicked off at the young age of fourteen, busking on Music City’s Lower Broadway. A few short years later, he was lead guitarist with the Don Kelley Band, playing four-hour residency sets at Robert’s Western World a mere twenty yards from where he busked, covering a treasury of honky tonk classics.
Recognised as the most accomplished Telecaster country guitar slinger of his generation in many quarters, Donato combined that love of honky tonk with a touch of psychedelic country on his 2020 debut album, A YOUNG MAN’S COUNTRY. His latest recording treads a similar path but with a degree or two more in an experimental direction. Broadening his healthy obsession with country music and its vintage genres, REFLECTOR finds him dipping into cosmic and classic country rock alongside touches of bluegrass and traditional honky tonk. Rifling through his encyclopaedic knowledge of all things country, Donato and his chosen team of seasoned session players present the listener with over sixty-five minutes and fifteen tracks in total, which plays out like a compilation of retro tracks plucked from those genres with a ‘where did I hear that before’ vibe to them.
Included are two killer instrumentals, Sugar Leg Rag and Locomotive #9, and other standouts are the excellent opener Lose Your Mind and the equally impressive Hi-Country, Double Exposure and Gotta Get Southbound.
Billy Strings' remodelling of bluegrass and overlapping it with Grateful Dead-type jams has been one of the more exciting developments in country music of recent years. It has also been a masterly career move for Strings, winning over audiences of all age groups. Donato, possibly on a smaller scale, is treading a similar path. A fun listen from start to finish, often with nods in the direction of The Allman Brothers, The Marshall Tucker Band and Black Oak Arkansas, and exceptional musicianship, REFLECTOR is both a hugely satisfying album and, at over an hour long, offers plenty of bang for your bucks.
Review by Declan Culliton
Clay Parker & Jodi James Your Very Own Dream Self-Release
THE LONESOMEST SOUND THAT CAN SOUND, the debut full-length album by duo Clay Parker and Jodi James, featured prominently in our albums of the year back in 2018. Constantly on the road - they can boast of having played forty-seven States in America to date - that album was recorded in two steps over three years. They initially recorded twelve songs in an eight-hour session in Nashville and completed the recording a few years later in their hometown, Baton Rouge, with invited local artists contributing additional instrumentation to the acoustic first takes. Recorded on a shoestring, that album drew comparisons with Gillian Welch / Dave Rawlings and gained the duo a host of positive reviews. So impressed was he by the album, actor and film director Ethan Hawke cast them in his 2019 movie, Blaze, based on the life of country legend Blaze Foley.
YOUR VERY OWN DREAM follows a similar template in its written content, although musically less acoustic than its predecessor. Similarly, it was created and recorded in a number of stages. Some of the material dates back to 2020 when, during lockdown, they recorded songs acoustically in their home studio. They had recorded an entire album of songs during that productive three-date period but with touring not an option, they decided to put the recordings on hold. Two years later, they booked studio time in Fort Worth, Texas, joined by Ryan Tharp (engineer), Dave Hinson (bass), and Clint Kirby (drums), and the second phase of the recording took place. The final stage found them back in their home studio, where they completed the final recording of the eight tracks in a fourteen-hour session.
As was the case with its predecessor, loneliness and soul-searching are recurring themes and no more so than in the beautifully melancholic Nothing At All and the ill-fated love song A Matchbox Song. James takes the lead vocal on the stripped-back back Hey, Hey, Hey and equally minimalistic is the title and closing track. They’re every bit at home with the more up-tempo inclusions, Fire For The Water and Flatfoot; the latter is a particularly raucous tale of lust and intemperance.
Rather than replicating the instrumentation of THE LONESOMEST SOUND THAT CAN SOUND, moving into unchartered territory by adding electric bass and drums on YOUR VERY OWN DREAM has worked spectacularly well, adding another string to their bow for their studio and live work. The common denominators are the unhurried melodies, delightful harmonies, and emotionally raw lyrics. The result is an album that is easy to become immersed in after a couple of spins; it certainly had that impact on me. The comparisons to Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings may be perceived as lazy or overstated, but this is classic and timeless gothic country of a similarly high standard.
Review by Declan Culliton
Anders Thomsen Antlers Self Release
After a recent EP release, Thomsen has just released this twelve track album that highlights his skills as a versatile singer, songsmith and guitarist. With his trusty regular team of bassist Chris Riser and drummer Chris Fullerton, they deliver an enjoyable and humourous set of songs that they are obviously having a bit of fun recording for wider consumption. They recorded back home in Reverend Bro Diddley’s Holy House in Savannah, Georgia, a setup that allowed them to get the best out of the process.
The first single, Internet, opens with yodel and goes on to declaim the lack of revenue his efforts garner as an independent artist when he puts his songs on the internet, something that is a pretty common experience for a vast array of musicians trying to continue to release music. Silver Lining is a bluesy workout from Thomsen, with his guitar well upfront as it is throughout the album. It is about his need to continually seek and find that silver lining. The blend of country, rockabilly, blues and more is his calling card. He also possesses a distinctive tone to his vocals that means the trio are well up for whatever the songs calls for. The life stepping up to the bar in various honky-tonks is set out in Over Yonder. There is a roadhouse rhythm to Burn Me Up that perfectly underlines why this trio are a draw whenever they play live, with Thomsen burning up the strings.
He also brings the tempo down a notch, with the latest liaison having a time limit before the new attraction becomes a Brand New Old Flame. There are a couple of instrumentals on offer too, Crosstown Boogie and High Sierra find the trio settling into a groove that allows them to show just what they can do in that particular element of their set. The country styling of the Making Plans is about a man who is perhaps putting something together somewhat ahead of the actuality of the possibilities. Next up is the irrationality of what many feel when a new lady steps into view, someone that he wants to get together with desperately, but who he knows that he really needs like he might need a Hole In My Head.
Lets Go On A Spree finds our protagonist once again hoping for another chance to gets things right, although the previous song might indicate that might not be the way its going to turn out! Gas On The Fire, a stand-out here, conveys the feelings of a man who realises that all he might have might simply become an another burned out relationship. However he never really gives up hope as he knows where he might find entertainment and enjoyment in meeting new faces in one of the one hundred Honky Tonks he has played and stepped into for a dance and drink or two.
That this is the work of a man who loves what he does is evident. I don’t imagine that Thomsen has the dizzy heights of fame, at his age, as his goals - though it would be nice for some of that to be available. In the meantime he continues to use his abilities to make music that pleases both himself and those who have encountered it, either live or in its recorded format. With ANTLERS, you get to take the bull by the horns.
Review By Stephen Rapid
Session Americana The Rattle and the Clatter Self Release
This album is subtitled “twenty years (so far)” and that is a very appropriate tag line for this Boston band who have been delivering consistently excellent music throughout their career. Over the time in question the changing line-up has released nine albums as they established a reputation through regular touring and a residency at the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge MA, where they performed on a weekly basis over six years. The sixteen songs featured on this collection dip into their full back catalogue and take favourite tracks from the different albums.
Included are four songs from the Pack Up the Circus album (2015), with the title track, All For You, It’s Not Texas and You Always Hurt the One You Love featured. The latter track is a terrific cover of the Fisher/Roberts song that first appeared in the 1940s and Session Americana give the arrangement a light, jazzy bounce after a slow acoustic intro that sets things up perfectly for some harmonica, guitar and brass pizzazz. The excellent Great Shakes album (2016), features with two songs Helena and Mississippi Mud while I Can’t Get Out is also included from Diving For Gold (2009), another superb album.
The band has always collaborated with other artists along the way and there are tracks featuring female lead vocals with Trip Around the Sun (Merrie Amsterburg), and Air Running Backwards (Kris Delmhorst), adding colour to the project, while the sweetly delivered Lighthouse Light is another song that highlights the excellent musicianship across the ensemble of players. This is best seen on tracks like the traditional Boats Up the River which kicks out a real bluegrass hootenanny. Other songs include the very enjoyable Beer Town, a fitting tribute to the great invention of the alcoholic drink.
There are live songs included and they are great fun, giving a sense of how good it must be to catch the band on tour. Making Hay, Doreen and a cover of the Rodney Crowell song I Ain’t Living Long Like This are played with a real joie de vivre and I defy anyone not to get up for a quick dance around the stereo. The great news is that the band undertake a European tour in February 2024 and I can highly recommend a seat at one of their shows as a compulsory purchase. The current band comprises Dinty Child (multi instruments, vocals), Jim Fitting (harmonica, vocals), Billy Beard (drums, vocals), Ry Cavanaugh (multi instruments, vocals), Jon Bistline (bass), and Eleanor Buckland (guitar, fiddle, vocals). Their roots-based music is compelling in the performance and the varied arrangements make these tunes quite addictive.
Review by Paul McGee
Steve Yanek September Primitive
Back to 2005 the release of Across the Landscape captured the emerging talent of Steve Yanek before we had to wait until 2022 for the release of the aptly named follow-up Long Overdue. In between these years this Ohio born musician established his own recording studio and record label. Having originally fallen foul of the music industry as a younger man, he also spent time in artist management and clearly knows everything about the ups and downs of the music business from both sides of the great divide.
This time around on album number three, Steve Yanek decided on a DIY approach to the recording process and dispensed with using the musicians that had helped colour the songs on his first two albums. All these songs were written during Covid lockdown and every instrument on the recording was played by Steve himself. Quite an achievement when you consider that he also produced the project at his home studio. The songs are mostly intimate in nature and examine the need for love and relationships that endure, in addition to highlighting the need to keep a positive outlook no matter what slings and arrows get thrown in our life path. The album is dedicated to the memory of Emmitt Rhodes who died in 2020. He was a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and studio engineer who inspired Yanek over a career in music that began back in the 1960s.
The songs September and Carousel are in tribute to a lover and all that is gained from a positive relationship. The commitment involved and the devotion shown to another is also present on Catch My Fall where any doubt or uncertainty to commit are removed by learning to trust. Begin Again is about resilience and pushing on through certain barriers, with the rhythmic beat and harmonica driving the song. I Could Use A Little Rain is another song about dealing with pressure and learning to just wash it all away.
There are strains that any relationship undergoes and the doubt and fear of losing someone that creep in. Songs like Losing You, Come Back In, and Count Every Moment try to balance the mistakes made with lessons learned and a hope for the future. Summer Days looks back at good times now gone and holds a longing for the past, whereas the sentiment on You Know It’s Right is to follow your gut and let your instincts show the path forward. That intuitive feeling and the inner voice being spun out to a slow groove with some nice saxophone in the mix.
These songs are a departure from the initial sound that won Yanek much media attention but they are equally as impressive in their arrangement and delivery on this more mellow project. An album that delves into the personal and succeeds in making it all so universal.
Review by Paul McGee
Nolan McKelvey Forward Self Release
This album is the third release from a singer songwriter who has been creating a broad palette of music for the last twenty-five years, both as a solo artist and in various bands. Hailing from Phoenix, Arizona McKelvey has played with the bluegrass groups Muskellunge and The Benders Band, in addition to other collaborations.
The album title track opens things up with a manifesto that declares the only way in life is forward, as the chorus determinedly declares ‘ We can't turn back time, don't look over your shoulder, We can leave the past behind, forward.’ The following track is Tir Na nOg which is Irish for the ‘land of the young,’ a mythical place in folklore where you can never age. The song is an ode to those who have already departed and a wish that we can all meet up again in this land of abundance.
During the Covid pandemic McKelvey lost both of his parents in quick succession and also a close family friend. The sense of absence is something that weaves through a number of these songs and Phoenix Rising looks at the fortitude to try and rise above the grief and carry on. Both Mother and Other Side are songs that are directly in reference to his mother and her illness. The former is a reality check on the fact the death is imminent and there is also a corollary to Mother Earth in the words that speak of the threat of global warming. The latter prays that both mother and son can be reunited after death has finally visited.
The song I Can’t Breathe looks at the injustice involved in police brutality and the need for society to speak out as a mass movement for change in order to be heard. Tears In the Dells (Yarnell) tells of the nineteen firefighters who died in a wildfire in Arizona in 2013. Sweetest Dream is a song that is written for his daughter and the beautiful pedal steel playing of Ryan Stigmon heightens the slow melody as McKelvey urges a positive attitude to life and a focus on the future horizon line. The final song New House is a hope for a new beginning where everybody can come together as one under an enlightened awareness and build something that lasts.
The musicians on various tracks include; Jeff Lusby-Breault (guitars), Ron James (drums, percussion, bass, vocals), Megyn Neff (violin), Tim Kelly (dobro), Dave Desmelik (guitar), Andy Rauff (keyboards), Thomas Knoles (keyboards), Dana Colley (saxophones), Jon Rauhouse and Ryan Stigmon (pedal steel), Tim Hogan and Jon Willis (bass). McKelvey plays acoustic guitar, upright bass and sings lead vocals. He also wrote all the songs and oversaw the production on the album. It is a worthy addition to his growing catalogue of strong albums and definitely worth your time in exploring the talents of Nolan McKelvey further.
Review by Paul McGee
The Montvales Born Strangers Self-Release
Sally Buice and Molly Rochelson’s performing careers kicked off as casual buskers in their hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee. Fast forward some years, and they can boast two studio albums as the folk duo, The Montvales. Their debut album, HEARTBREAK SUMMER CAMP, released in 2020, was a stripped-down affair featuring harmony vocals, banjo and acoustic guitar. Described by them as “A snapshot of our early twenties that hops around between sincerity and playfulness and contains adventure, longing, and lessons learned,’’ the album showcased their combined talents, both musically and lyrically. If that album oozed simplicity and joy, BORN STRANGERS is a more full-blown project.
The recordings took place at Sean Sullivan’s Tractor Shed Studio in Nashville, Tennessee, with the production duties overseen by Mike Eli Pinto, who co-wrote and produced Emily Nenni’s 2022 album, ON THE RANCH and who is also Chris Stapleton’s hired guitar player. Rather than the skeletal approach used in their debut album, this project features a host of Nashville session players, giving the album a fuller sound than its predecessor.
The writing is also less personal, with several songs addressing more ‘state of the nation’ topics such as climate issues (Ghost Show), gentrification (Empty Bedrooms), women’s rights (Bad Faith), and social injustice (Woman of God). However, relationship matters close to the heart are not entirely abandoned. Loneliness and lament are expressed in Through The Night and Say The Word, and the title track reflects difficult but appropriate lifestyle decisions taken and moving on, ultimately to brighter times.
The Montvales have pushed out the boundaries and left their comfort zone with BORN STRANGERS. Leaving that secure nest and spreading their wings has yielded a most impressive suite of songs with foundations in both folk and country.
Review by Declan Culliton
Taylor McCall Mellow War Black Powder Soul/Thirty Tigers
An indication of the high regard South Carolina native Taylor McCall is held in is his selection by Robert Plant as the support slot on Plant’s late 2023 UK tour. Further dates in the UK opening for Plant have been added for March of this year. In his later career, Plant has become heavily absorbed in American roots music, so that endorsement speaks volumes of McCall's pedigree as a singer-songwriter.
MELLOW WAR is McCall's third studio album, following SOUTHERN HEAT (2017) and BLACK POWDER SOUL (2021). His latest project is a concept album based on an imagined collection of letters that McCall's grandfather, a Vietnam vet, might have written home during his time at war. Six of the twelve tracks are co-written with Tennessee artist Sean McConnell, who also co-produced the album with McCall. Two more are co-written with Nashville-based singer-songwriter Olivia Wolf.
The album intro is a fifty-second recording of McCall's grandfather, Rev. Russell Owen - who also is pictured on the album's front cover - singing a hymn. Given its subject matter, it comes as little surprise that the album's material reflects the isolation, apprehension and pining of a young man enslaved and cast into precariousness. The songs amalgamate country and blues, with a side of gospel. Love lost and squandered, and opportunities lost, raise their head on Angel Falling Down, I Want You Still and Tide of Love. The McCrary Sisters provide backing vocals on Tide of Love and also on the bluesy album highlight Star of the Morning. The album closes with a co-write with Tyler Findlater, You To Blame. Featuring acoustic guitar and delicate strings (contributed by Sista Strings), it plays out like a final letter written by the author as he approaches the end of his life. It's a powerful closing statement to an album heavy on sensibility and highly personal, without ever descending into self-indulgence.
Reviewed by Declan Culliton