Lambchop

OH (ohio)

2008-10-06

Not to be confused with the fictional sock puppet, Lambchop the band is best categorized as unclassified simply because what one hears on their latest release titled OH (Ohio) is just that – tough to put your finger on. Nevertheless, a thorough listen brings together a hybrid sound of country, soul, jazz, and folk – and that's just a start. With the lyrical wit of frontman Kurt Wagner, coupled with his deep baritone voice that sounds like a mixture between Lou Reed and Matt Berninger from The National fame, the band gets off to a pleasant start with the stripped down instrumentation found on the title track Ohio. Moving on, the piano kicks in along with the woodwinds on the beautifully crafted track titled Slipped Dissolved and Loosed. However, perhaps the most pleasant sounding and commercially viable song on this release is the faster moving National Talk Like a Pirate Day. Wagner's sense of humor seems to come through here especially but it's also layered with some of the most delightfully sounding musicianship on the entire recording as well. The album ends with a couple of songs that incorporates Wagner's sing-speak style with a sound that might be classified as country by some. Close Up and Personal is a love song while I Believe in You is a Don Williams cover that seems to work fairly well here. Overall, while some songs such as I'm Thinking of a Number and Popeye seem to be too lengthy and not all that attention-getting, Lambchop does offer its fans some fine music to come back to over and over again. ~ Reviewed by Jeff Bouma Note track #6 titled Sharing a Gibson With Martin Luther King Jr is not playable due to FCC regulations.

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