Twilight Revival Combine Blue Grass Rock and Indie Attitude on New LP
If hook heavy indie/blue grass is what you want, then the LP "Parlor" by Twilight Revival, consisting of band members; Rick Guistolise, Eric Korte, Brian McDonnel and John Monaghan, is just what's called for. The opening track, more of an intro, is simply called entry. It gives you the feel of being in a carnival, which pleasantly sets the mood.
After this it kicks into "Anyone" with an upbeat intro ala indie rock. The heavy toms and quick riffs are very reminiscent of "Clash era" U.K. punk. It's over in a quick two and a half minutes but it does the job. Sure to be a favorite on long car rides through the sprawling expanse of America's highways.
The "fun times" keep on rolling with "If Only", an roller coaster lyrically, and "Helicopter" a swagger filled track against anyone who's ever held you down in life.
"Madison" brings a nice halfway point to the album. It slows everything down, well as slow as this band can get. It would be a great tune for a slow dance, save the discordant guitar solos (unison bends and all). Following it is "Devil's Crutch". McDonnell (Vocals, Guitar) pulls out his best Eddie Vedder impersonation on this one. The impersonations continue on "Taquito" this time Bruce Springsteen's style is in the spotlight. This is the most acoustic you will ever hear on the album. And the almost cowbell sounding snare clap puts you in the right mood. There are some parts during the buildups that you are just waiting for the saxophones to break into a solo. Unfortunately the brass section is null. None the less the song holds it's own with a mellow floating guitar solo.
The hooks are at there highest in "Dealing With Intergers". All the parts of this radio ready machine will get stuck in your head for days. Verses and all.
"Sing Along" and "Fields" round things out fairly well near the end. "Fields" more so due to the duality of the mellow guitar lines contrasting with the burly almost screaming vocals. You can literally feel the hair follicles in your face being stimulated.
The final track is "May Tomorrow Be Better". The haunting harmonized melody is slightly out of connection with the instrumentals, but it's still pleasing to the ears, in a creepy kind of way. There are parts in this track where it cuts to live studio tapes. Towards the end, you can even hear the tech guys talking about setting up while the bass and drums groove. Some listeners may become frustrated with how the song falls in and out of this setting, and the loads of feedback most likely won't help either.
All in all, if you're not afraid of a little blue grass twangy rock with an indie rock mentality, then Twilight Revival's release from Mile Long Records is something to add to your library, or at least pop in your car for a nice long drive. - Nick Coamey
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Comments
yeah but Posted by a dan on August 20th, 2009 love these guys. great live band. but "bluegrass"? not so sure bout that. good local find Posted by whitney on August 19th, 2009 thanks for pointing this one out. its really good, begin-to-end. Right on.. Posted by Corrie Harding on August 11th, 2009 Nick, you're right on...this album would make a great road trip companion! yeah Posted by petro on August 11th, 2009 this is good stuff! a few songs in and really digging it. good tip, thanks! Good Going Posted by Carole Coamey on August 9th, 2009 Great going, Nickman- What a way to start a Career!!!!! girl next door Posted by Rachel D-N on August 9th, 2009 OMG!! I love you nick!! no hetero LOL, ur amazing and im soo proud of you. Congrats!!