Freeman Dre & the Kitchen Party - Red Door, Second Floor (2010)
mp3 CBR 320 kbps 104 MB
Folk Rock, Urban Folk, Acoustic, Alternative/Indie Rock
As their promotional material so readily acknowledges, the work of Bob Dylan and Tom Waits represents Freeman Dre & the Kitchen Party's presiding influence.The structure of a song such as 'Went To Town' cannot fail to recall Dylan's 'She Belongs To Me', whilst 'Let's Take the Show On the Road' and 'Do Widzenia' could happily sit alongside tracks from 'Rain Dogs' without anyone batting an eyelid. Dre's gravelly, weathered vocals also make these comparisons inevitable. However, whilst this album may not innovate, it handles its influences so confidently that it's impossible not to take notice.Freeman Dre's lyrics are a significant factor in this success. Full of vivid wordplay and rhapsodic rhyme schemes they immediately command attention, whilst the laconic vocal delivery imbues them with a sense of nonchalant style. Yet for all this detachment, you never doubt the sincerity of their content. Often they provide a magnificently scathing comment on the increasing hollowness of Western civilisation, perhaps best evinced on 'It's Good To Have Faith In the Lord', which nicely skewers the hypocrisy of the religious right.Dre's songwriting talent is also ably supported by his backing band. It's a classic string-band sound, with guitar, mandolin and double-bass at its core, warmly embellished throughout by harmonica, accordion, piano and such like. The arrangements and instrumental interplay are exemplary throughout. There's an occasional lack of dynamics, but on the whole, it provides an elegant underpinning to proceedings. In combination with the songwriting, it ensures that whilst 'Red Door, 2nd Floor' doesn't do anything that hasn't been heard before, it does it with sufficient verve to prove its worth and establish a legitimate place in the musical landscape. - Americana, UK
Tracks:
As their promotional material so readily acknowledges, the work of Bob Dylan and Tom Waits represents Freeman Dre & the Kitchen Party's presiding influence.The structure of a song such as 'Went To Town' cannot fail to recall Dylan's 'She Belongs To Me', whilst 'Let's Take the Show On the Road' and 'Do Widzenia' could happily sit alongside tracks from 'Rain Dogs' without anyone batting an eyelid. Dre's gravelly, weathered vocals also make these comparisons inevitable. However, whilst this album may not innovate, it handles its influences so confidently that it's impossible not to take notice.Freeman Dre's lyrics are a significant factor in this success. Full of vivid wordplay and rhapsodic rhyme schemes they immediately command attention, whilst the laconic vocal delivery imbues them with a sense of nonchalant style. Yet for all this detachment, you never doubt the sincerity of their content. Often they provide a magnificently scathing comment on the increasing hollowness of Western civilisation, perhaps best evinced on 'It's Good To Have Faith In the Lord', which nicely skewers the hypocrisy of the religious right.Dre's songwriting talent is also ably supported by his backing band. It's a classic string-band sound, with guitar, mandolin and double-bass at its core, warmly embellished throughout by harmonica, accordion, piano and such like. The arrangements and instrumental interplay are exemplary throughout. There's an occasional lack of dynamics, but on the whole, it provides an elegant underpinning to proceedings. In combination with the songwriting, it ensures that whilst 'Red Door, 2nd Floor' doesn't do anything that hasn't been heard before, it does it with sufficient verve to prove its worth and establish a legitimate place in the musical landscape. - Americana, UK
Tracks:
1.Six Hundred Feet 04:15
2.Babylon 02:51
3.Oak Tree 03:09
4.Let's Take The Show On The Road 04:42
5.Went To Town 03:27
6.Saturday Night in Parkdale 04:17
7.These Walls (They Listen) 02:52
8.Needle In Your Eye 04:46
9.It's Good To Have Faith In The Lord 03:42
10.Magdalena 03:26
11.Funny Situation 03:32
