Juanita Stein The Weightless Hour Agricultural Audio
The fourth solo album from the Australian Indie-rock band Howling Bells leader Juanita Stein, THE WEIGHTLESS HOUR, finds the singer-songwriter reinventing her core sound. With an altogether more stripped-back sound, Stein’s focus was directed towards vocals, guitar, and piano, forsaking other instrumentation and, by doing so, draws the listener towards the lyrical content in the ten tracks.
Stein’s 2020 record, SNAPSHOT, was a grief-driven affair which reflected on the unexpected death of her father. Much of this project was written in Tuscany during lockdown, during which Stein and her family stayed in a rented house, waiting for the return to normality in that uncertain time. The title track ponders on that time (We’re living in the weightless hour, no ties to bind, no call to arms.) as her thoughts were towards religious supremacy (Carry Me), aimless relationships (Driving Nowhere), brutal European history (Old World), and youthful perceived invincibility (The Game).
Working once more with producer Ben Hillier (Nadine Shah, Gang of Four, Depeche Mode), the angelic pureness of Stein’s vocals wins through, with the concentration focused on her nostalgic and well-constructed tales. Stein has described the project as an exercise in ‘shredding layers of constraint I’ve placed upon myself over time.’ In practical terms, she also confesses that the more skeletal musical direction allows her to replicate the material on tour without the financial drain of having a full touring band.
A departure from her previous recordings, repeated spins, preferably with headphones, reveal lyrically astute compositions and a masterclass in simplicity.
Declan Culliton
Dean Owens The Ridge Trilogy EPs - Ghost Walking / Ridgeline / Sacri Couri Continental Song City
The word ‘prolific’ is not wasted on Edinburgh, Scotland artist Dean Owens. Adding ‘passionate, enthusiastic and probing’ to that description gives a profile of a singer, songwriter and musician whose musical yield, in recent years has crossed the Atlantic from Scotland to America and back to Europe, exploring disparate musical landscapes to fuel his projects. Those travels yielded the double album EL TIRADITO from last year, SINNER’S SHRINE in 2022 and DESERT TRILOGY EPs in 2021. Owens also released a collection of songs written and recorded during lockdown titled PICTURES in 2023, completing an output that many artists would spend the best part of a decade working on.
These latest recordings preview what can be expected on the full-length album, SPIRIT RIDGE, to be released next year. Recorded at Crinale Studio in Emila Romagna, Italy, Deans co-produced with the renowned Italian producer, musician and filmmaker Don Antonio, well known to Irish audiences as the frontman in the band Sacri Couri, whose credits include the touring backing band for Alejandro Escovedo. Owens’ great-great-grandfather was born and raised in rural hills of Italy, drawing Owens to that part of the world and the four-century-old farmhouse where the recordings took place. THE RIDGE TRILOGY EPs is a collection of songs recorded at the sessions for SPIRIT RIDGE, including a number of demos of songs that will be included in the album in their finished format.
Owens travelled to Tucson, Arizona, to collaborate with Calexico’s Joey Burns and John Convertino and record EL TIRADITO. The sun-drenched landscape influenced the musical direction of that album. Similarly, the cooler temperatures and lush agricultural lands of Emilia Romagna ring through in these recordings. Playing out as an autumn listen rather than the summer sound of its predecessor, those influences are evident from the onset in GHOST WALKING, the first instalment in the trilogy. On the opening track, My Beloved Hills, the writer’s thoughts are drawn to loved ones who passed away and the comfort he garners from the wild landscape. Tame The Lion, which follows, takes its cue from Owens’ great-great- grandfather’s occupation as a lion tamer and Sergio’s Kitchen, communicated by Owens’ now trademark whistling, revisits the spaghetti-western thread much loved by him.
The dramatic brass and string-infused Light This World opens RIDGELINE with a searching and impassioned sentiment. More sinister and ghostly, though no less soul-stirring, is the pedestrian-paced Come With Me. The final leg of the trilogy, SACRI COURI, includes a song regularly featured in Owens’ live sets, Spirit Of Us. Two instrumentals are also featured, the Latin-coloured El Minuto and the more relaxed The Gloaming, before he signs off with an acoustic version of a song to be included in next year’s full album release, A Divine Tragedy.
Owens continues to push the boundaries, skipping from Morricone-styled Western soundtracks to hauntingly lonesome ballads. This meeting of musical styles from different continents is another hugely impressive listen. It’s also an impressive taster of what we can expect from the full-length album, SPIRIT RIDGE.
Mention is also warranted about the exquisite packaging and artwork with the album, which is a trademark of all Dean Owens’ work. On this occasion, the credit goes to Dave Huebner, who applied the finishing touches to an altogether most impressive project.
Declan Culliton
Lucinda Williams Sings The Beatles From Abbey Road Highway 20 / Thirty Tigers
The pandemic and the resulting downtime from touring whetted Lucinda Williams' appetite to record several tribute performances to assist independent music venues that were starved of income during that period. The performances streamed live for a fee, resulting in the income generated going directly to the selected venues. Such was the success of the recordings, titled Lu's Jukebox, they were subsequently released on CD and streaming services. The six original recordings were Vol. 1 - Runnin' Down A Dream (A Tribute To Tom Petty); Vol. 2 - Southern Soul: From Memphis To Muscle Shoals & More; Vol. 3 - Bob's Back Pages: A Night Of Bob Dylan Songs; Vol. 4 - Funny How Time Slips Away: A Night Of 60's Country Classics; Vol. 5 - Lucinda Williams - Have Yourself A Rockin' Little Christmas; and Vol. 6 - You Are Cordially Invited: A Tribute To The Rolling Stones.
This latest addition which finds Williams recording music dear to her heart may very well be the cream of the crop. The recordings took place at the hallowed Abbey Road Studios in London, where Williams, her band and longtime friend and producer Ray Kennedy worked on the twelve selections. Her regular band members, Marc Ford (guitar), Butch Norton (drums), Doug Pettibone (guitar), and David Sutton (bass), were joined by Richard Causon (Hammond B-3) and Siobhan M Kennedy (backing vocals) and, as you would expect with those players, the musicianship is of the highest order. Three of the selections are from the 1968 album THE BEATLES, better known as The WHITE ALBUM and are standout versions. While My Guitar Gently Weeps, with duelling riffs from Ford and Pettibone, is at least equal to the original version, which is no mean feat. The other two inclusions from that album are Yer Blues and I'm So Tired, the former ideally suited to Williams' love of raunchy blues numbers. I'm Looking Through You gets a beefed-up makeover, as does her scorching take on With a Little Help from My Friends, which takes its cue from Joe Cocker's blistering version. She slips down the gears with tender takes on Something, Let It Be and The Long and Winding Road.
For lovers of The Beatles and Lucinda Williams, this is a 'must-have' album. The Beatles may not have been an obvious choice for Williams to pay tribute to, but her versions and the killer playing by her band work spectacularly well.
Declan Culliton
Ramona and the Holy Smokes Til It's Over Self-Release
'I joke that if you've had your heart broken enough times, you're actually obligated to become a country singer,' explains Ramona Martinez, announcing her debut four-track EP, TIL IT'S OVER. It's a taster of what to expect from the Charlottesville, Virginia, artist's full-length album due for release in 2025. Alongside her four-piece band, Kyle Lawton Kilduff (guitars), Brooks Hefner (pedal steel),Jay Ouypron (bass), and Porter Bralley (drums), Martinez recreates the classic old school honky tonk sounds of yesteryear.
The late 50s country music vibe is matched by the song title I Love Smoking (who didn't in 1960!), and the opener, I Want You To Be My Man, is a busy honky tonkin shuffler. The other two tracks are the pedal steel-led love ballad Dear Avery and the title track, which delves into the inevitable heartbreak side of romance.
Following in the footsteps of Kimmi Bitter, whose retro-country sound is reaching far and wide, Ramona and the Holy Smokes are at the early stages of a similar musical career journey. On the strength of this sampler, their wheels are firmly in motion.
Declan Culliton
Tris Munsick & The Innocents Big Medicine Moon Self Release
Here we have a Wyoming-based musician who, in the past, has been a part of his family band, The Munsick Boys with brothers Ian and Sam and father and mentor Dave, but who now, with his band, releases music under his own name. With three previous albums under his belt buckle Tris' new album arrives at the end of the year and is good enough to warrant serious consideration for addition to our album of the year listings. Lonesome Highway has previously reviewed his brother Sam's equally fine album released last year. Ian Munsick also has a number of releases out and is signed to major label Warner Bros Records in contrast, while Tris and Sam release independently.
What perhaps differentiates these siblings is that they all grew up on a ranch, with all the work and dedication that means. They apply to their music, too. This album features some great accompaniment under the production guidance of the ever-reliable Tommy Detamore, a noted pedal steel guitar player in his own right, who co-produced this album with Munsick. Recorded at Cherry Ridge Studios in Texas, the album's assembled players, including regular live guitarist Daniel Ball, certainly get the tone right for some bona fide western-themed country music that is not camp-fire folk songs of some exponents but instead aimed more at the honky tonk hardwood floor. Its themes are then open to acceptance by a wider audience than some of the music that comes from a similar place and time. It features a vibrancy that has an immediate appeal for Munsick's self-written songwriting. The lone cover on the album is that of Merle Haggard's song Red Bandana.
That chosen lifestyle, which is based around its ongoing demands, also has its own issues such as heartbreak and relationships is at the heart of Munsick’s songs. They often feature relationships tinged with the effects of moving on, of looking down the road ahead and not in the rearview mirror, as summed by the line "the windshield is bigger than the rearview mirror." However, that also means having to deal with leaving behind potential partners to pursue another road. The title track, an album highlight, is built around an immediate and catchy guitar riff that underscores the sense of something special that is happening for our protagonist at that particular moment in time. Wishful Thinking is again a balance between trying to find that special place and losing it, contrasting with the upbeat pace and the appeal of the song's arrangement. That again is echoed in Don't Slow Down and its need to move on and find new pastures.
The album is filled with tales of the ups and downs of life and love, which are, in truth, a part of most people's lives, as portrayed in Wild Child, or the fiddle-based serenity of the path of an uncertain love that becomes a 'fallen out of love' story that is Calm Before The Storm. That more reflective approach is also taken in the closing song All I Ever Wanted. While a little (western) swing is welcome in Me, Myself And I, the fiddle leads the steel in a partnership that has its roots in the sounds of an earlier era, which is still relevant when played like this.
The inclusion of the aforementioned Haggard song Red Bandana sees Munsick is delivered in a fine and impassioned vocal, acknowledging those paths that are not easy to walk down. It is a song that fits entirely with the sentiment of the original material here on what is a varied, enjoyable and welcome addition to that body of work that is inspired by a lifestyle that may not be one that every listener has lived or indeed would want to, but one that will still resonate - whatever moon we might be listening under.
Stephen Rapid
Rick George Self-Titled Self Release
This is a five-track EP from Rick George with a mix that marries acoustic instrumentation with pedal steel, bass and drums with fiddle, harmonica and mandolin, the latter adding something of a more down home feel. George has the depth of age in his voice for a relatively young man. It is expressly retro sounding with an old-school sound that is finding favour with newer audiences who seek something less polished and a little more real than what they might have encountered in the past.
George’s previous release was a single of Drinking And Dreaming produced by Dean Miller, a producer who looks for music with that sense of verisimilitude, something apparent in these new songs. This time out, George has handled the production himself. Recording in Dayton, Ohio, where he is now based, with a number of players who bring these tracks their simple, effective sense of storytelling with a rust belt flavour.
He is a family man with a take on how life has a way of influencing your thoughts and creative path. The opening song, Here We Are is a reflection on survival that looks at a relationship that has grown and matured over a period of time with a realism that realises the need, at times, for space that is not always possible. However the couple find that despite the problems they may have gone through they are still together, even when they didn’t feel they might not have and that at the end of the day that, well, here we are. Place and roots are important overall to most, even when it becomes an imperative to move on. In Lead Me On it may be a question of faith to seek that some sort of guidance.
This theme is also present in Homestead, with its sense of wanting to settle down when you can count on love and support to help you get through. Another side of the coin is tossing it in the air to see which side is better, to be happy or free, and then actually that what you have is perhaps what you wanted at the end of it and not to go looking for Something I Won’t Find.
The final track, Just Like Old Times, is an echo of memories that hold the past, which may always be with you even when you may not see that, as things may change and you go astray. It is a title that sums up Rick George and his music, which may suit those who are fans of some of the more iconic singer/songwriters they may have come to love, even when some are no longer with us. But here is an artist who perhaps needs a full-length release to really establish his credentials. This is, however, just the beginning …
Stephen Rapid
Jeremy Dion Bend In the Middle Self Release
Based in Boulder, Colorado and a licenced therapist by day, Jeremy Dion has created his self-remedy by putting his energies into the creation of music in his free time. Indeed, it has proven more than a therapeutic release and has led to the delivery of three previous albums, starting as far back as 2008 with the appearance of his aptly titled debut, Finally.
This new recording is eleven songs that portray a code for living with a concentration upon both balance and self-awareness. Whether we are focused externally or whether we have already begun the internal journey of looking within, these songs act as a guiding hand to assist our travel. An example is the song Lovin’ Our Friends which asks the question ‘How do we love ourselves like we’re loving our friends,’ suggesting that our negative self-talk as adults can be outgrown by a focus on self-realisation.
Another song Bend In the Middle is all about learning to go with the flow and accept what the moment brings ‘So caught up in everybody else and how they’re living (wrong!), When everything relevant occurs within.’ It Happened So Fast captures that special feeling of falling in love when suddenly everything in the outside world falls away and no longer seems to matter. There are two songs written for his daughters and the sentiment in both Sweet June and Avery is one of unconditional love and the timeless devotion that a parent holds for their children.
There is a different declaration of love to a partner on Constant and on You and I we have a song that reminisces on endless days spent in Paris with a special partner. All I See Is You visits the predominant theme of the album and that sense of loving awareness surrounding us if, we are open to letting it enter. The songs are all self-penned and recording took place in Cinder Sound Studios, Colorado. The musicians deliver a very engaging album that is filled with great ensemble playing and plenty of sweet melody across the songs. A rewarding album and one that will please the discerning listener.
Paul McGee
Beau Jennings and the Tigers American Stories Major Chords Black Mesa
This singer songwriter grew up in Oklahoma before moving to Brooklyn where he became involved in the music scene over a number of years. He fronted the Americana-influenced Cheyenne, a band that was very active from 2003 through to 2007. Jennings released his debut solo album in 2008 and since then he has been moving between different projects, whether as collaborator, solo artist, or continuing to record with Cheyenne. In 2019 he recorded for the first time with a new backing band,. The Tigers, who are based in the city of Norman, Oklahoma and a perfect match for the songwriting talent of Jennings.
This new album represents the third Tigers release in the last five years and the line-up of Chase Kerby (guitars), Chris Wiser (piano, organ), Dustin Ragland (drums), and Michael Trepagnier (bass) are very much in tune with the guitar and vocals of Beau Jennings. This is a great example of heartland rock in all its energy and opening track Oklahoma Heat captures the essence of blue collar workers who try to provide a living in challenging times ‘I been holding on so long, It’s getting hard to keep my grip, I feel it when it’s coming, I feel it when it slips.’
The driving sound of the title track follows and a photograph of Brooklyn life captured in a memory of local bands and meeting a girl at the show. Broken Angel holds further memories of New York city with a girlfriend, enjoying the bright light experiences, going to the game, or hanging out at the local bar. The song Driving Around is about going back to your hometown and simply reliving past days in the act of driving the local streets again. Knockin’ is a love song and a promise for good times to come ‘Did you hear they got their licence, Happy hour on the horizon, If you come to town, I’ll try and show you around.’
Old school friends are remembered in Boston Avenue a song that deals with the passing of Donnie, a close pal who died at a young age ‘After the service your mom took me to your old room, she hadn’t touched a thing, everything looked the same.’ Norman Nights is a memory of hanging out in local bands and getting high, while People’s Porch is a tribute to the passing of the same schoolfriend who featured in a previous song. The guitar attack on Rubberburn is exciting and the big organ sound adds to the dynamic. Lookin’ For A Way has an early Springsteen feel on a song about getting out of town and driving towards the horizon.
The final song Sooner Superettte follows a similar theme of youthful swagger and looking for a place to put all that energy, with the image of a local five and dime and garage providing a meeting place ‘These days I’m topping off my tank, These days I’m paying off my debts, There ain’t nothing you can’t find at the sooner superette.’ The album sound is very clean and in tune with the overall atmosphere created by producer (and band member) Michael Trepagnier. It is a strong statement that has plenty to entertain and comes with a thumbs-up recommendation.
Paul McGee
Captain Smut Serenades For the Underdogs Self Release
This is a 6-song EP from an artist who describes himself as “A troubled troubadour that sings sad songs.” The transient life of a vagabond is not an easy path, but for Captain Smut it is a lifestyle choice, cast in the role of the travelling troubadour. His home exists on the road in a camper van, continuously travelling, almost as if by maintaining a state of perpetual external motion it’s possible to somehow outrun the ghosts of inner uncertainty.
The past follows us around however and whether Captain Smut is moving on from a place or a relationship, he accompanies himself at all times; perhaps always just one day away from where he wants to be. The word ‘smut’ conjures up images of impropriety and the negative connotation is hard to shake off. Perhaps a show of empathy with our fellow man is sufficient cause to banish the demons that gather and can result in that sense of isolation and loneliness. These common experiences and thoughts are captured in these songs and reveal the persona of a dweller on the threshold. The songs offer insight into the human condition, even if our perennial questions remain unanswered.
Godforsaken Town opens proceedings with a song about leaving a place. The guitar and harmonica mix is very appealing, even if the lyrics reflect ‘I seem to bring chaos everywhere I go, I let it free to fall down, And I seem to hurt everyone I know.’ The following track Comin’ Home has a trad-country sound that delivers a breakup song ‘This way of living makes a man feel alone, and I’m feeling wary of being a rolling stone.’
Better Man is a song that echoes regret for past mistakes and it is very confessional in tone. The chance for redemption is something that just may be out of reach ‘For all the tears I cost, For all the love I’ve lost, I wish I could start again, And be a better man.’ The song arrangement is memorable with some sweet guitar playing. Watch Time Pass By talks about ‘Life has no value, It’s purpose less than absurd, I’m wasting time to keep up with the herd’ and of wanting to just sit in observation of the play of life. The influence of Tom Waits runs through the vocal and the view of life from someone on the outside of daily routine.
Every Road Has It’s Dead End ponders upon the fact that no matter what choices we all make, the path chosen will ultimately lead to a destination that we are powerless to change or escape from. The final song All Things Left Unsaid deals with the question of suicide and a pre-determined choice to leave this mortal coil ‘I cooked my last meal and opened a bottle of wine, And went through all possible scenarios in my mind.’ In the end, being alone can be a gateway to freedom or a self-imposed prison, the decision is ours to ultimately make. Captain Smut has a very expressive vocal delivery and the production on these tracks is excellent, with lots to enjoy in the song arrangements. I look forward to more from this interesting artist.
Paul McGee