Steve Von Till: A Life Unto Itself (2015)

It’s been a while since I’ve talked about any dark Americana music. But a new Steve Von Till isn’t something I could just ignore, is it?

The record again finds our man in the pattern of playing a few acoustic guitar chords, singing a line, playing a chord, singing a line, and playing a few more chords. He doesn’t really play and sing at the same time, which is a perfectly acceptable way to approach this kind of music. However, sticking to that pattern the whole record, and playing everything at the same pace for a full 45 minutes, might bother some listeners.

Thankfully, other dynamic elements are here to save it from becoming too monotonous. Beautifully morose fiddle and percussion weave into “A Language of Blood,” while elsewhere you can hear synths, piano, and even a few heavy, distorted guitar riffs.

Wino & Conny Ochs: Freedom Conspiracy (2015)

The legendary Wino has been working with German guitarist/singer Conny Ochs for a while now. It started out a little shaky, as they didn’t seem to know how to use their very different voices in a coherent way. It seemed like the only thing tying them together was a similar vision and perhaps friendship, not complementary qualities. But now, on their third collaboration, they’ve really got this thing figured out.

Freedom Conspiracy is just the kind of dark Americana, singer-songwriter material you’d expect if the album cover is a black-and-white drawing of a guillotine, arranged so that you are looking at it from the same angle as its victim. Now, lay your head down right there, above the basket, and listen.

Dark Americana Briefs, Volume 18

Ladies' Night

Feist: Metals (2011)
4 out of 5 stars

Feist is a Canadian who stretches my preconceived notions about what "pop" means. There are no big dance hits here: Metals is full of simmering tunes that are sometimes vulnerable, sometimes angry, and always beautiful. While she touches on R&B, I've included this record here for the many Americana and blues touches. She's not afraid to make it heavy for a brief moment or two, either. Feist wouldn't be out of place sharing a stage with Sarah McLachlan or Chelsea Wolfe; a midpoint.

Dark Americana Briefs, Volume 17

If God is vengeance, we all have it coming.

Bob Dylan: John Wesley Harding (1967)
4 out of 5 stars

With great tunes like "As I Went Out One Morning" and "All Along the Watchtower," it's easy to see why Bob Dylan's John Wesley Harding is considered one of the greatest albums of all time. A consensus top 10 across genres and decades, if ever there was one. And Dylan is considered perhaps the greatest songwriter of all time. For my part, I enjoy it a great deal, the downbeat mood with acoustic guitar, drums, and harmonica being a style I enjoy, and the melodies solid. But I can't give it a perfect score for two reasons. One, I think this is one of those where lyrics are what elevate it, and I simply can't pay much attention to lyrics; they are nearly meaningless to me. Two, Dylan's voice sounds vaguely like Randy Newman.

Agalloch: The Serpent & the Sphere (2014)

Plateau of the Ages

If you're not familiar with Agalloch, you could rightly be called metal-illiterate. They are one of a handful of bands in the course of metal's four decades and change who have, truly, altered the landscape. More than likely you are familiar with them, and you already have your opinions on them. If those opinions are negative, then disregard and move on, because The Serpent & the Sphere doesn't do anything radically different. Instead, it highlights what the band does well.

It is, as usual, an expertly crafted piece of cinematic neo-folk/black metal in the Cascadian style. Whatever black metal piques the curiosity of the mainstream and the Pitchfork crowd, Agalloch once again put to shame. It's tough to sunbathe when you're under a shadow as large as "Dark Matter Gods."

Dark Americana Briefs, Volume 15

Hell of a Week

This has been a hell of a week for me, thus the lax updating. I hope one of these will make up for it.

T.G. Olson: The Bad Lands to Cross (2013)
3.5 out of 5 stars

T.G. Olson is the frontman of Across Tundras, in my opinion one of the most interesting bands in metal today. As I've mentioned before, he also has a hell of a lot of solo material for pay-what-you-want on Bandcamp. If you had to explain Bad Lands to Cross to someone who grew up in the 60's, you might get pretty far by calling it acid country. It takes that classic sad cowboy style of country and adds in atmospheric electric guitar, a layer of fuzz over the vocals, and just the right amount of echo to make it psychedelic. It's good stuff, but not quite dynamic enough to go on for a full hour.

Wovenhand: Refractory Obdurate (2014)

The Reverse Path

In the nearly three years since I found Wovenhand, I've found myself listening to it more than any other artist. If it's not my favorite band, it's at least my favorite active band. Consider the Birds is one of the five albums that changed my life, if you'll excuse the slight hyperbole. So, take this with a grain of salt if you must. But I've been recommending them repeatedly since then, and I've gotten nothing but positive feedback from anyone who's listened.

So, with that introduction out of the way, let's consider Refractory Obdurate, the band's seventh studio full-length. The Laughing Stalk (2012) found the band adding heaviness to their unmistakable blend of folk and country. I had always sensed an affinity to metal from David Eugene Edwards' music, but that is where it really came through. The incredible "Corsicana Clip" and "The Refractory" are excellent examples of a the Laughing Stalk sound continuing. But if anything, Refractory Obdurate represents an even larger shift for the band.

Dark Americana Briefs, Volume 14

Salt and Sky

I'm still chasing that dark Americana dragon.

Salter Cane: Salter Cane (2007)
4 out of 5 stars

I know nothing about Salter Cane, having discovered them by accident on Rdio and listened without looking them up. An extremely familiar drum beat (I've heard it from Munly and 16HP) kicks things off, and it's very straight-forward folk/country of the kind I'm used to. But also, it's fairly high-caliber, and for some reason I can't quite put my finger on, it reminds me of Nick Cave.

Dornenreich: Freiheit (2014)

An Intimate Epitaph

I've previously expressed my admiration for Austria's Dornenreich. Freiheit will not change that, but the specifics are going to have to change.

Flammentriebe was great because it struck a masterful balance between black metal and folk music, while making excellent use of a guitar-playing technique that I've come to identify with Dornenreich above any other band. Freiheit is quite different. It's almost (though not completely) a neofolk album, more in line with In Luft geritzt but not as overtly intense. It's one of those records that lives and dies by restraint, and can't possibly be understood by hearing it in any way other than in its entirety.

Noctooa: Adaptation (2013)

Let's Ask Mr. Owl

According to my book on Hieronymus Bosch, owls are traditionally a symbol of evil. But owls are friggin' everywhere now. Aside from the decades-old Tootsie Pop commercial, I hadn't really given them much thought until about 2009, when an owl appeared on the cover of DevilDriver's Pray for Villans. Before long, I started to see owls in relation to Kvelertak. And in products made for infants. Peruse any trendy retailer for baby supplies, and you can't avoid the nocturnal avians. So I guess my twins' matching girl and boy owl-face knitted stocking caps are pretty fucking metal. Right?

Well, finally there's a band who speak for the owls: Noctooa. And I don't mean to diminish the owl theme, but merely point out the fact it has already been diminished. Owls really are a powerful symbol. But, you know, maybe it's not a good time in history for that. Noctooa's music deserves better.

Dark Americana Briefs, Volume 13

Things Aren't All Rosy

Songs of Townes Van Zandt Vol II (2014)
3.5 out of 5 stars

Here is the follow-up to 2012's Songs of Townes Van Zandt, an album I loved. This time around the contributors are John Baizley (Baroness), Mike Scheidt (Yob, etc.), and Nate Hall (USX). Each of them has at least one strong contribution, but really, it's kind of hard to screw up such magnificent songs as "St. John the Gambler" (Baizley) and "Rake" (Scheidt). The real winner of them is Hall, who superbly covers "Waitin' Around to Die" and "Our Mother the Mountain." Some of the split’s modern touches are nice, like the echoing percussion on "St. John the Gambler," but Baizley's characteristic guitar tone on his solos is just a bit too heavy-handed. Overall I like this, but it just doesn't hold up to the excellent Steve Von Till/Scott Kelly/Wino record that preceded it.



Neurot Recordings

Dark Americana Briefs, Volume 11

Darker

Here's more of my second musical obsession. Let me know what you think.

Mark Kozelek: Like Rats (2013)
4 out of 5 stars

Growing up in a small town in rural Nebraska: It turns out, that's not a great way to keep up on things. I'm always finding out about music and trends from the 90's that I had no idea existed. For example, slowcore. Mark Kozelek was one of the big names of slowcore, with a couple of bands, but on Like Rats he plays dark Americana, pure acoustic folk/rock. He manages to make the style consistent among covers of such varying artists as Danzig, Bad Brains, Bruno Mars, and Genesis, among others. There's even an unironic cover of "I Got You Babe" that is way better than it should be. But the best songs are his take on "Green Hell" that rivals the Metallica version, and a rendition of Godflesh's "Like Rats" which sounds like Wovenhand.

Folk Briefs, Part 6

Folkin' Shit Up Again

Fejd: Nagelfar (2013)
3.5 out of 5 stars

The album art on Fejd's Nagelfar is befitting a mighty Viking banner. It should be seen only as the cover of this album, or billowing on the t-shirt of a 400-pound man riding victoriously through Wal-Mart on a power chair, drenched in the sweat of his heroic exertions. The music on the album is Swedish folk with metal drumming added in to make it much easier for us metalheads to get into. To people like me, who can't necessarily tell the difference between Scandinavian and Finnish folk music, it will sound like Amorphis without the metal guitars. Which is pretty cool, by the way. Not pillaging your local Supercenter cool, but cool.

Dark Americana Briefs, Part 10

Double Digits

Vic Chesnutt: North Star Deserter (2007)
5 out of 5 stars

Vic Chesnutt became a paraplegic at a young age and eventually died of an overdose on muscle relaxants. If you think he might make some fucked-up and dark music, you'd be right. This is the closest thing to Wovenhand I've yet found (see "Splendid," "Debriefing"), with the psychedelic and post-rock touches added to folk/rock. North Star Deserter tends toward sparser arrangements, with a hint of the great Cash. Stop what you're doing right now and listen to "Everything I Say." Thank me later.

Metal Briefs: More Short Briefs of 2013

Two by Two

Two-song releases comprise a lot of my listening lately. It only seems fitting they get two-sentence reviews.

Aktor: I Am the Psychic Wars
4 out of 5 stars

This sounds almost exactly like Dawnbringer's last two albums, but with prominent synths added to the mix. Pretty fucking rad.

Dark Americana Briefs, Part 9

Three More

Big John Bates: Battered Bones (2012)
3 out of 5 stars

Frontman Records contacted me after noticing my interest in dark Americana, and I thank them for it because this Big John Bates record was an interesting listen. In the end, though, Battered Bones isn't really what I'm looking for. It's described as "rustic punk," but I'm pretty sure it's some permutation of rockabilly. It's upbeat, punky rock with sounds pulled from dark Americana, but it's not really Americana, and definitely not dark. It's fun.

Pesanta Urfolk Briefs

Condolences, and Celebration

I recently mentioned that the strange mix of music that Pesanta Urfolk chooses to focus on--obscure metal, dark Americana, and neofolk--intrigues me a whole lot. So I thought I'd explore a whole lot more of what they have to offer.

As a side note, it seems the label head's mother recently died. I'd like to extend my condolences. She was quite young, which only makes it harder.

Munly & The Lee Lewis Harlots: Munly & The Lee Lewis Harlots (2004)
4 out of 5 stars

I previously expressed an interest in hearing Munly & The Lee Lewis Harlots, and this reissue by Pesanta Urfolk provides an excellent opportunity. This blends 16 Horsepower's rock-influenced old-time Americana with Nick Cave's unhinged genre-bending narratives. There's plenty of strings, guitar, and enough banjo, plus female backing vocals. The folk and country are joined not just by their familiar gospel music ("The Leavening of the Spit-Bread Girls") but also by relatively modern, mid-century styles ("Of Silas Fauntleroy's Willingness . . .") Being genuinely different, engaging, varied, dark, light, and entertaining, it's one of those rare 78-minute albums that works.

Dark Americana Briefs, Part 8

I See a Darkness

Elliott Brood: Ambassador (2005)
4 out of 5 stars

Elliott Brood is a Canadian band who, according to Wikipedia, have been characterized as "death country." That should be enough to catch the attention of anyone who regularly reads this feature, but let me proceed. They're the best alt-country band (not a side project of a metal or punk luminary) I've found since Wovenhand / 16 Horsepower. While compared to those two bands, it's a little more like mainstream country in the general compositional style and the way electric guitar is used, Ambassador is some of the darkest music I've heard using a banjo (etc.). The vocalist doesn't quite convey the pain of David Eugene Edwards, yet he is no slouch. The first half of the record is especially great. This is quite the lucky find.

Dark Americana Briefs, Part 7

You know the drill.

Across Tundras: Electric Relics (2013)
4 out of 5 stars

As I've mentioned before, Across Tundras is one of those few bands who expertly land themselves at the crossroads of metal and dark Americana. They sound like an old-school country/Western band (complete with nasally cowboy vocals) mixed with the desert rock of Kyuss. The production is extremely dry, and listening to it feels like a walk through the desert to a marginal frontier town. It's tailor-made for me, but your mileage may vary.

Man's Gin: Rebellion Hymns (2013)

Doggamn, Don’t Let It Go

Any time you read the words “dark Americana” on this blog, you can blame Man’s Gin. Sure, I’ve always liked acoustic-electric material on the order of Alice in Chains Unplugged going back to my teenage years, but Smiling Dogs is the album that sent me down this rabbit hole. It’s the reason I listen to things like Steve Von Till, Dax Riggs, and Wovenhand nearly as much as I listen to Suffocation, Darkthrone, and Evoken.

Rebellion Hymns is the long-awaited follow-up to Smiling Dogs, and it is well worth the wait. Not only does it continue in the dark rock/country/folk of its predecessor, it builds on it.