The Natchez Shakers "Shaker Hymns" CD
[Thorp]
Ouch. The label describes this Alabama/Tennessee band's unusual fare as "punk influenced Irish folk music with Appalachian undertones". The first track borders on being experimental noise, so I was sort of curious, but sure enough... once things got underway it was clear that this wasn't something I was going to get into at all. Yeah, they use all of the traditional elements: Vocals, guitar, bass, and drums... But they also use mandolin, fiddle, accordion, banjo, and then some. There's just nothing here that I really enjoy. I don't like folk music, I don't know what the hell Appalachian undertones are but I assume I don't enjoy those either, and I'm not sensing much punk here really (aside from the vocal approach). I also find the vocals to be a bit obnoxious because the guys can't carry much of a tune. The overall performance can be sloppy, too. As if that weren't enough, the recording is way too thin and unevenly mixed for this stuff to come off properly anyway. The drums are way back in the distance, the accordion is entirely too loud... it's just a mess. Aside from the black and white photos I really like the layout, however. The text looks excellent, the textures and colors are cool, and the front cover looks fucking great. The black and white photos sort of take away from that, but it's not a big deal. It's still very clean. But really, I just don't like this. I'm shocked to see this come out on Thorp, though I must give the label credit for doing whatever they want and straying from the boundaries, even if I'm not a fan of this particular band. I don't know what else to say. This is basically a weird folk record. I can't get into it. (1/10)
Running time - 38:59, Tracks: 13
[Notable tracks: ehhh, none of them really do anything for me]
Thorp Records - http://www.thorprecords.com

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