Southwire - Southwire

Published Monday 1st July 2013
Southwire - Southwire
Southwire - Southwire

STYLE: Roots/Acoustic
RATING 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
OUR PRODUCT CODE: 136937-20370
LABEL: Chaperone
FORMAT: Digital Only Mini-album

Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Take a folk singer from Duluth, Minnesota, Jerree Small; a drummer and producer who was once part of experimental hip-hop group Crew Jones, Sean Elmquist; and a free-form rapper Ben 'Burly Burlesque' Larson and you have one of the most original bands around. "Hymn-like folk spirituals" was how one journo attempted to describe the group's left-of-centre sound while the eight tracks presented here cover topics like family ("Brother"), loss ("Bell") and regret ("Nothing Like") while the in-your-face "God" makes their faith crystal clear. Larson's declarations are sometimes clear, sometimes enigmatic but always intriguing ("Men project the best of themselves into the sky/Where it cannot be much brought to bear") while their eccentric arrangements sometimes resemble the dirge-like numbers of Chicago experimentalists Califone. Not everything works, but the sheer inventiveness of their approach will find a connection with more adventurous listeners.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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