Thursday, December 6, 2012

#653 Larry Keel - Journey

Bluegrass, full of lazy drifters and devilborne lightning guitar work, with Keels gravelly croak crooning its crippled way over top with surprising grace. The fretboard fireworks on the first track might lead you to expect a more frenetic affair, but its actually all rather soulful, and eventually the tickettape fingerwork fades into the background.

It's hard to say if this album is simple or complex, and maybe that's its strength, the ability to be both and reap the twin benefits of being interesting and soothing all at once. Keels voice occasionally loses its stage presence without gaining the gravitas of vulnerability, hovering in a weirdly inelegant place, but those moments aside, this is a strangely compelling album that a surprising number of folks might enjoy if they dared let themselves 4/5

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