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Waxed - Record Review from Issue #68 Mar-Apr 2007

Rounders

Wish I Had You (Blind Pig)

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This Oklahoma City quintet definitely has its own take on American roots music, twangy and country-flavored but rooted more in blues, as if Creedence had been reincarnated as a more bluesy version of its old self. The guitars of Ryan Taylor and Michael Stone speak together in a singular voice — jagged and ringing, full of rich harmonies and crystalline echo, even toying with Butterfield/Bloomfield “east-west” modalities on “You Know Better Than That”. The interplay between them and Brian Whitten’s fluid, fevered baritone is fresh and spontaneous-sounding even if it’s doubtless been carefully worked out. The rhythm section (drummer Stu Williamson, bassist Dave Spindle) choogles on laments such as “Oh Why”, though most of the songs are built on crunching riffs that rise and fall and build to cathartic climaxes. Eventually, their remarkably full sound succumbs somewhat to a certain sameyness, but this impressive debut marks them as a band with lots of room to grow.

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Originally Featured in Issue #68 Mar-Apr 2007

Cover of Issue #68 Mar-Apr 2007

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More articles from this issue:

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