Richard Schroder - Wildest Dreams track review

Year : 2018
Genre : Country
Origin : United States
Official site: > - here - <

Listening to Richard Schroeder's Wildest Dreams makes one realize that this highly talented artist has surely must have forgotten more about country than one is likely to ever know about it. The track is an all-heft-out-, sizzling, boomy declaration of robust, major country-power, and the best thing about this effort is how it manages to come up with lyrical content that literally invites you to re-adjust your position regarding what you thought to be true about the world, and you in it, AND, naturally: your wildest dreams in it.

Hearing a country singer so efficiently challenging you to ponder if your wildest dreams indeed are wild enough, (thus, worthy to have enough) is the most you could hope for from this genre-, nevertheless, a rock solid variation on this solemn agenda. With extremely well-researched production values that encompass you into a lush torment of sound, and high quality performances, Wildest Dreams proudly reigns in the intriguing intersection where the content and genre is definitely country, yet, the flags of rock already are seen on the horizon.

Seldom-, yet super-pleasant are the times when the reviewer has no other option than to express a maximal level of enthusiasm towards an artist, and the precedent now indeed is such, as this doubtless is a declaration that punches two balls home in a single swing, even though both are coming in with 360 miles per second. An immediate recommendation.

Where to check the song out:
Richard Schroder's Soundcloud

Richard Schroder's official website:
www.richardschroder.com

GyZ at Bandcamp.

If you want, check out my music

and / or

Buy me beer. Read more!

Dave Wirth - Eyelids and Oil & Open Mouth Monstrous Teeth track reviews

Year : 2017
Genre : Elegiac Country
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Official site: > - here - <

With his two latest declarations "Eyelids and Oil" and "Open Mouth, Monstrous Teeth", Dave Wirth defines a largely unexplored territory as the basis of his current musical interest. While the songs are non-apologetically country at heart, their anatomy is prone to tenderly submit to a Pink Floydesque sensibility. One has a feeling as if listening to the music of a truck driver who already had the chance to see the best and the worst the road has to offer, and now it is due time to reflect on the results of the experiences, the results that are stigmatizing his soul and body, while he still sits in the "company" of the incoming white stripes that are relentlessly tuned to infinity, and they urge the man behind the wheel to make the best effort possible at  maxing out his human condition.

These songs are devoid of any and all rabid dynamics you would assume as pertinent to being a truck driver: the insatiable thirst for adventure-, if it ever were present, has already been assuaged by the countless satisfaction of it, and now the protagonist finds himself in a meditative position, as reflected by the characterology of this music. Drums are not even included in these songs, not in the common sense in the word, anyway: a probable symbolic parallel drawn to express the insignificance of time while on the road. A minute, a life, an eternity: each have super-similar meaning in this type of existence, that which commands its experiencer to go as mellow as comprehensible, because everything else is a pain to bear, while this mellowness can endure all, anything and everything. Maybe even 10000 more white stripes.

Wirth's signing is soulful and honest, and the revealed instrumental sounds are especially rich in timber and softness. This is the music of the truck driver who did not yet decide whether to quit his job tomorrow, while a substantial part of his psyche seems to be indicative of a dormant conviction that there is no other home for him than to being on the road. A spiritually submissive and uplifting experience.

GyZ at Bandcamp.

If you want, check out my music

and / or

Buy me beer. Read more!

Cranky George - Misery Road track review

Year : 2016
Genre : Soft Folk Rock, Country
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Where to check the song out: > - here - <

Misery Road is an entry from the upcoming longplay of LA based folk rock/country ensemble, Cranky George. This page has a lot of good info on the history of the group, while this review will concentrate on the single, as an indicator of what possibly you could expect from the foreseeable future, "debuting" on the 18th of November - simultaneously with the new Metallica double release. This spirit at dormant competition is something one must reckon with an intact poker face. Let's dive into the song!

Misery Road eloquently and inventively worships oldschool songcraft traditions with top tier production values, these latter meticulously balanced/arranged in at attempt to court said traditions with maximum-, though well orchestrated efficiency.

The self-reflective, ironically introverted, placid initial pacing conveys the classic country setting of parking at a fireplace in the company of a bourbon, a dead relative and a banjo - banjo not included, do you happen to have a lighter? -, yet, this trusty pulsation (pun intended) is armed with the intention to dress into moods and colors of hefty, brisk intensity.

At a given dramatic point in the song, by which you falsely think that everything has happened already, and grandpa is no risk to the society OR to your psyche as the top dog of this music-universe, the band commands the intensity up against the roof, as to let the soul reach beyond the skies, nevertheless remaining faithful to the bulk of the exhibited musical character. Clean, competent, all-voice-out lead singing is supported by a country ethos that reveals grace and elegance with sufficient power to display the heart of country classicism.

The result is an ironic, hilarious display of deliberately larger-than-life comic book country done in a truly badass, ballsy fashion. This feat could not have been pulled off without a decent frontman-, nor without sophisticated taste and competence on/at how exactly command the sounds to make them more intense, but keeping them from messing with the structure. The track is a truly pleasant experience to listen to, as it does not satisfy with merely existing, instead, it IS a successful musical metaphor FOR the flow of existence itself. An immediate recommendation for all music lovers, and don't forget, it is only a week's time until the LP debuts.

Step on the Misery Road here.

GyZ at Bandcamp.

If you want, check out my music

and / or

Buy me beer. Read more!

Jim Levatte - This Ain't My Day track review

Year : 2016
Genre : Country with a Redneck Rampage tint
Origin : United States

On the surface, Jim Levatte's single "Ain't My Day" is the picture perfect representation of the most prominent redneck ballads, yet, your host is both reckless and inventive enough as to spill nitro instead of family friendly orange juice on the well behaved parade. Levatte prefers well placed, elegant irony over sunset-supported hay-sentimentalism, and challenges the redneck ethos, as opposed of being a mere-, helpless, submissive participant and observer to it.

The production choices reign in a safe spot between shotgun-grade southern rock and retirement-home pleasantries, making the track a candidate for an immediate revisit upon completion. Read on to know more.

Do you know the Guns 'N Roses song "Breakdown"? Anatomically, Jim Levatte's effort shows a greal deal of similarities with said declaration, particularly in the context of the harmonic structures and the evoked emotions. This track is more exploitative though, - which now is a compliment - as it exhibits an almost undeniable urge to deliver a status report AND call it a day ASAP, a decision that serves the longevity of the track even as a first time encounter.

Country is a great-, but uncompromisingly pretentious genre at its heart, and this pretentiousness is the sole reason that the style also reigns as a timeless one. Because pretentiousness rarely goes out of fashion. < -  Pro Tip! You are simply not supposed to say and do SOME things in country, because folks surely will give you a slanted look, and/or a good old fashion beating for bonus good measure.

Levatte knows all the tropes of the genre, thereby the reason he embarks on a journey to see the depth of the curvey mirror the redneck ethos is STILL willing to scrutinize itself in: a brave and a hilarious agenda. Had he come out with a full length fueled by the same intention, he easily could be to country what Steel Panther is to hair metal. As such, based on this track alone, Jim Levatte definitely has found a legitimate type of rhetorics to resonate through, and one remains curious to see if the artist will have enough content under his belt to fill a full length declaration with.

GyZ at Bandcamp.

If you want, check out my music

and / or

Buy me beer. Read more!

Chris Leigh - Broken Hearted Friends review

Year : 2013
Genre : Country with a Honky Tonk leaning
Origin : United States
Official site : > - here - <

At surface level inspection, Chris Leigh might seem to be a diligent practitioner of stone-traditional - not a negative attribute at all - honky tonk country, yet his eloquent/unrestrained affection towards spicy and hefty rhythm patterns imbues this soberly paced release with a sense of restless-, adeptly presented country exploitation. And, let's be honest, folks : country is best when it is under rabid exploitation.

Leigh offers and maintains steadily constructed harmonic/melodic focuspoints through which he inspects the timeless anatomies of traditional country with the eyes of a true scholar. Sure enough, there are some much welcomed counter-pointings to the more intense declarations, such as the third track, "If You Make It To Heaven" - whereas the very next track, "Ramblin' Man" deliberately takes the intensity of country to hell and back Johnny Cash-on-speed style - even though Johnny has his own history of excessive roadway-speeding, as far as I know.

In the context of these upbeat tracks - which definitely reflect the overall character of this high octane chili barbecue package - Chris Leigh channels the same energies Marty Robbins offers in his classic "Big Iron on His Hips" - narrative musical storytelling, done in - no subtler or more precise words - "badassfull" fashion. If you are not "badassfull" when you are in the middle of narrative musical storytelling along country vibes about loaded guns, hot redneck women and dominant cowboys, then you are doing it WRONG. You have no other choice than to come across as badassfull and desirable to be around - if you can't accomplish this, someone will EAT you right off the stage, and this is how it is supposed to be in the world of country - yeehah, I might add.

Chris Leigh has a perfect understanding and a consorting dormant agreement with these dynamics, I feel, because every single track on this delivery would be a welcome addition to a Fallout New Vegas computer role playing game session, and this is the biggest and most honest compliment I could give to a release of this style. Grab a roll of beer, tiger, and read on to know more about the spin while I think nice things about you. (Honest.)

Read more!

Brian Larney - The Starting Line review

Year : 2013
Genre : Country, Soft Rock crossover
Origin : United States
Official site : - here -

With his debut LP, Brian Larney might indeed literally be at The Starting Line, yet this definitely is a start you want to render all your musical attention to. Larney has a ripe and competent command on the trademark melodic moods and harmonic structures you are most comfortable holding unto upon a country-centered listening session, combined though with a soulfully channeled steadiness exhibited in the most important aspect of it all : the plain good old songcrafting ability.

The album is extremely easy and pleasant to decode, as its sole purpose - obviously enough - is to entertain on a laid back, yet uncompromisingly exigent genre-specific comfort zone. Occupying this full-optimum position with a pretty much perfect understanding of the bread and butter mechanics of country music, Larney never ceases to imbue a tint of family friendly roadmusic-heft into the respective builds with the utilization of soberly tamed and eloquently presented soft rock affections. Rare is the time when the miserable music critic has no other action left to him than to nod a head in unconditional approval, yet such is the case right now, as the record contains crystal clear musical thought, realized through elements that I personally would not bother looking for flaws in with a poker face worth calling one attached. Read on to know more.

Read more!

Post Trauma - Sleepless review

Year : 2012
Genre : Country Blues Rock Crossover
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Official site : > - here - <

Post Trauma is a country/blues rock crossover audio attraction from the United States, pioneered and lead by project mastermind Billy Ulrich. 2012, November marks the release date of the first massive portion of the double sided (and highly double barreled compatible) monster LP "Sleepless/Dreamless", weighing in with 25 tracks of bourbon-soaked soulseeking. This review is based on said first segment of the soon-complete project, which is doubtless to be regarded as a full scale installation on its own merits already - the complete installment is scheduled to entertain your receivers and receptors in May, 2013. Read on to know more about this ambitious project.

Read more!

Jeff "J. J. Star" Duran - Cursed Since Birth Deluxe Edition review

Year : 2012
Genre : Hip Hop, Dance, Rockabilly, Country, Surf Rock
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Official site : > - here - <

There is little if any doubt that with the Cursed Since Birth Deluxe Edition mixtape, disc jockey and micwiz' Jeff "J. J. Star" Duran assembled the perfect compilation with hyper-optimized capacity to make family leaders hide their loved ones in the closet out of the sight of this  flamboyant, explicit/hilarious sonic content. The one thing that will strike you first about this installment is the mere length of the contribution. With 22 tracks spread throughout a time period clocking in well above the 60 minute mark, the mixtape will bend you to its deliberately and intriguingly twisted will, giving you no other chance than to let go of all expectations and submit to all of its curious tints and the galore of skillfully placed oddities which serve as the premier appeals of the flow. Read on to know more about this monster-lenght mix tape.

Read more!