Loose Cattle
Someone's Monster
***and1/2 out of *****
The newest offering from the New Orleans based Loose Cattle is a ringing collection of theatrically influenced alt-country and Americana. Some top notch friends also drop by to help out the vibrant band throughout Someone's Monster.
The band, Kimberly Kaye - vocals, Michael Cerveris – vocals, guitars, mellotron, René Coman - bass, Doug Garrison – drums, percussion, Rurik Nunan – fiddle, vocals are a talented bunch as they mix twangy excursions with vocal/lyrical emotional urgency. Someone's Monster's production from John Agnello and Cerveris is world class, as instruments ring and breath around strong vocals.
The record opens with "Further On" a tune that incorporates a bit of pop and pleas to be better, looking prophetic after the recent election. The band swings toward the theatrical side of things, telling long tales in their songs, two of them being "Cheneyville" which is about escaping a small town from various angles and "Here's That Attention You Ordered" which takes on misogyny head on, starting with sexual harassment at JazzFest and ending on a front porch in Texas.
That toxic masculinity takedown also filters into the more rock focused, chugging of "The Shoals" which features Patterson Hood (Drive-By Truckers) with strong singing from Kaye and layered heavy sounds. Vocal soaring is at the forefront of another guest appearance as Lucinda Williams joins the band for "Joanne" which floats and flutters. Other guests such as multi-instrumentalists Alex McMurray and Jay Gonzalez pop up as well to help the band, as does the backing vocalists "The Divine Choir" of Debbie Davis, Arséne Delay, Meschiya Lake.
The band straps on some blues rock for "Not Over Yet" but sounds much more at home with lap and pedal steel guitars from Johanna Divine and Jon Graboff on the more Americana numbers. Most of the songs on Someone's Monster run long as the band loves to dig in and speak directly, such as on "Before We Begin" which discusses George Floyd's murder and institutional racism. However, some editing would help other tunes, such as the ominous "God's Teeth" or "Big Night Out" which both stick around too long. Better are the sweet sashaying of "Antiversary" and the breezy New Orleans tribute "Crescent City" which is upbeat around excellent fiddle work.
The album closes on a soothing, positive note as "Tender Mercy" features a duet between Cerveris and Kaye around soft percussion, strings and strums. Top notch productions, stout songs and perfectly placed guests elevates Someone's Monster above your basic Americana releases as Loose Cattle reach a career high.
_____________
Support the artists, buy the album, peep some video below:
No comments:
Post a Comment