Richard Buckner- Dents and Shells
Published November 02, 2004
On the new Dents and Shells (Merge) Buckner seems to have unclenched quite a bit. Leaving the bulk of the playing to a crack team of hired sidemen, Buckner offers a solid set of ten songs that make the most of his way with a yearning melody and a laid-back vibe. Operating in the same general territory as Townes van Zandt, the Jayhawks (but softer and more messy) and early Steve Earle (without the snarl and the drugs), he seems to have figured out how to write songs that let the listener in. In particular, the shimmery guitar and piano of the opening "A Chance Counsel" and "Her" sit beautifully among the naked melancholy of "Firsts" and "And The Waves Will Always Roll," making Dents and Shells the first Richard Buckner album to do everything right with his considerable talents. Highly recommended, even (especially?) for non-fans of folk music.
Merge Records
On tour (all dates with w/ Damien Jurado, Dolorean)
11.01 * Colorado Springs, CO @ 32 Bleu
11.03 * Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
11.04 * Phoenix, AZ @ Old Brickhouse
11.06 * Pomona, CA @ 51 Buckingham
11.07 * Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
11.08 * San Diego, CA @ The Casbah
11.09 * San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
11.11 * Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall
11.12 * Portland, OR @ Berbati's Pan
11.13 * Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern
Also posted to The Ministry of Minor Perfidy. Visit the Ministry and be enlightened. Your compliance is appreciated; indeed, it is compulsory.
- Richard Buckner- Dents and Shells
- Published: November 02, 2004
- Type:
- Section: Music
- Filed Under: Music: Adult Alternative, Music: Country and Americana, Music: Folk
- Writer: John Owen
- John Owen's BC Writer page
- John Owen's personal site
- Spread the Word
- Like this article?
- Email this
Save to del.icio.us
Comments on this articleComments
Incredible as always, Buckner weaves and folds the light and darkness of his perceptions into a beautiful mess. An enchanting bad dream that is slow to wake.
Why is the Andy Heaton review plagarized here? Or is this Andy Heaton's blog?
Add your comment, speak your mind
(Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/21770)
Johno,
I'm intruding here to let you know I posted your review of this (your Blogcritics.org version to the Advance.net Web site.
I'm the new music review editor guy at Blogcritics.
The review can be found at a few different places on the Advance network around the country, but here's one of them.
http://www.cleveland.com/newslogs/musicreviews/
It's on the front page right now but that will change as I catch up and add more reviews. Then you can find it by hitting the archive on that link for 11/04.
- Temple Stark
http://www.templestark.com/blog