Wednesday, January 24, 2007
We Heart Belgium
Here's another
review of the new record, this time from
ROOTSTIME:
Who's gonna pour my whiskey when you're gone? Such important life questions are the subject of the songs of Axton Kincaid, a San Francisco, California, quintet. The band is especially active in country rock, mixes in some folkie elements, and models itself on exemplars such as Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Neko Case, and Uncle Tupelo.
"Songs from the Pine Room" is their first full CD, their only other offering being the self-titled EP they let loose on the world in the spring of 2006. The voice of singer Kate Howser--who wrote all but one of the numbers--is extremely suited to the up-tempo country ditties. A few of the band's members learned their chops through years of playing wedding parties and suchlike, and know how to keep time and maintain an ambience. "Things That I Do" is a jaunty little waltz about mankind's time-honored bad habits, such as drinking and smoking. You can continue to waltz along to "I Still Miss Someone," which has the mandolin in a prominent role. The divergent themes of the songs range from the loss of a good barman in "Who's Gonna Pour My Whiskey When You're Gone?" to the loss of a family member and friend in "Irene, Goodnight," and a final farewell to someone you've hurt and disillusioned in "Rearview" and "When You Go Away." The only cover on this album is of the Stone Roses' "I Want to Be Adored."
The band says that "Songs from the Pine Room" is the sound and story of people who spent their childhood crawling across barroom floors and then walking through country meadows, who learned to ride horses before they could walk, and who learned to drink before they could talk. All in all, very American, with a cowboy hat atop the head, but really a fine recording for aficionados of the genre.
(Translated by Scott Rasmussen)
posted by axton kincaid #
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