2009-08-08
This is the second album from the San Francisco seven-piece outfit, Or, the Whale. I find it to be a bit more "countryfied" than their first album, "Light Poles and Pines". This album of sometimes rocking, folk-country does have some good things to offer, such as nice production and vocal harmonies. Besides your basic guitar, drums, and vocals, Or, the Whale's brand of Americana also features dobro, pedal steel guitar and banjo. Most of the songs here are somewhat Starland Vocal Band-sounding in their country-pop harmonies. The more rocking songs are the album opener, "No Love Blues", the haunting "Keep Me Up", and the Jefferson Airplane-ish "Black Rabbit". Rebecca RuthKenley Collins
Belle Black
GORD DOWNIE AND THE COUNTRY MIRACLES
The Grand Bounce
Cerys Matthews
Cockahoop
Michael Franti
Songs from the Front Porch
Joel Mabus
Retold
DRIFTWOOD FIRE
How to Untangle a Heartache
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