Cherries in the SnowBy Elk CityTags: Elk CityDownload : MP3 AudioWhile I love V.L.A.’s theme song for the Glenn Close TV vehicle ‘Damages’, I think the producers really missed the boat by not using the hopeful but biting dream pop of Elk City’s ‘Silver Lawyers.’ A cut off Elk City’s 2007 release ‘New Believers,’ ‘Silver Lawyers’ is indicative of the treasures and talents of bandleaders Renee LoBue, Ray Ketchem and their strong lineup - Sean Eden, Barbara Endes, and Carl Baggaley. The current incarnation of the project is reasonably recent yet the band already works well together with a music veteran’s aplomb. Singer Renee has quite a collection of vocal hats she convincingly wears. On ‘Cherries in the Snow’ she barks the verses with a Patti Smith growl and croons the choruses like the French standard singer Barbara (Monique Andree Serf) while the sensual ‘Los Cruzados’ gives LoBue and the band a chance to channel their inner Cowboy Junkie. They set up a nice Pixies dynamic push-pull using LoBue’s versatility as the catalyst – bouncing handily from a relaxed but upbeat verse structure to a sudden burst of cataclysmic guitar freakout. And a quick side note: the guitars sound really fabulous on these recordings (and I’m pretty picky about that sort of thing)… - read the interview with the band by Walt Wells here.

[ Tue, 10 Jun 2008 10:48:43 GMT ]

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