It sure gives me the Lang-Horn…
There is something about the raw musical roots of Langhorne Slim that I just can’t get enough of. After trawling through a pile of newly released CD’s playing the odd song on each to see if it would hook me in, I came across this talented guy from Philadelphia, and quite frankly have not looked back!
What we get here with his official self-titled debut album are thirteen songs that crossover genres from Acoustic, Blue-Grass, and Country-Folk, all with his bluesy, but unique voice. Right from the off we have the short shot of ‘Spinning Compass’ that sounds slightly earthy in a foot-tapping way, this leads to the almost R&B of ‘Rebel Side Of Heaven’ that sounds slightly like a classic Black Crowes number, with added brass section, pianos and backing vocals.
There is an atmosphere here that it’s hard to put your finger on, and whilst Mr Slim has a history of finding himself musically in New York, I am either thinking of a small town in Maine (this is the state that the album was in fact recorded), or somewhere a little more further down in the Deep South. ‘Restless’ is a quick acoustic number that will have you humming away whilst out fishing, picking cotton, or even just sipping lemonade on your front porch. There are beautiful musical arrangements all through the album from Mr Slim’s back up band, who have a name in their own right, The War Eagles. They keep things tight slipping from honky-tonk to Blues, and Country seamlessly.
We have a slight Country/Blues to, ‘Sometimes’, whilst ‘She’s Gone’ will have you tapping your boots so much that you will think that without more moonshine your toes will fall off. Then although I’m not normally a lover of ballad’s, ‘Collette’ is probably the first song that I started to sing without the album in the background. The lyrics are poetic and thoughtful, “Colette, I knew the moment we met // We’d go to my head // I took a breath and left // into the atmosphere // I guess, that it was something you’d said // The rest of ‘em were dead // Well it must seem pretty clear // That I love you // Yes, I do…” It’s sad and sentimental, but bloody good all the same!
‘Hello Sunshine’ is slightly quirky in a Donovan meets Dylan way, whereas again in, ‘Diamonds And Gold’ we have a slow Blues/Rock feel like the Crowes again if they were more folky. ‘The Honeymoon’ has more of a happy ‘60’s feel in the vein of The Animals and The Kinks, with heavy keyboards and reverberating guitar melodies. Next we have some Blue-Grass in shuck’n’Jive of ‘Tipping Point’ that is just short of a good Yee-haaaw! Following on we have the great old fashioned sounding Blue/Folk of, ‘Oh Honey’ that gives me flashes of voodoo in Louisiana, and I can almost hear the crackles of this playing on a gramophone in a large house somewhere deep in the swamps… Great, great, great!
Some of the tunes are instantly memorable, and here with the catchy song, ‘Worries’ we have one. It’s a happy little shuffle of a song that is timeless. The album then finishes with the longest song, ‘Hummingbird’ which is a haunting acoustic number, sending us off on our way just before the fog comes down…y’all.
I won’t lie to you here, I love this album. I love the simple and thoughtful lyrics with great musical arrangements in the background which includes a Tuba • And quite honestly since hearing The Vandals play their tongue•in-cheek song, ‘Country Tuba’ I just can’t get enough of them! The visions that this album projects for me, takes me off into worlds of mystery, and any music that can do that to a person has to have something about it.
Langhorne Slim has toured with the likes of The Avett Brothers, Lucero, Murder By Death, and Rocky Votolato (another Country/Folk singer who I reviewed recently). I can’t say whether Lamghorne Slim will be the next big thing, but I do know that along with the likes of the great Dusty Rhodes And The River Band, the more back-to-roots Country/Rock is once again making a well deserved return, and for that I thank the Lord! Amen.