Written and recorded just next door in Santa Monica, “Shoot the Horse” paints a distinct portrait of the colorful yet humdrum L.A. life through the eyes of rock trio, Les Blanks (formerly Muso). A complete listen to the album, which will be released May 20th, is a bit like a cruise along one of the busy boulevards on a sweltering hot day with no fully-formed plans. While it’s comfortable and mildly entertaining, after a while the view out the window verges on the depressing and monotonous.
The ten tracks on the album are held together by solid rock and roll drum beats and electric guitar that also follows a fast-paced rhythmic pattern, creating a bit of a laid-back country blues feel. Les Blanks’ punk rock elements reflect The Clash’s influence on their songwriting, however the mood they convey is a bit more relaxed and Les Blanks does not seem interested in pulling the listener far out of a comfort zone. Few of the songs make any directional shifts or advancements beyond the first 30 seconds, keeping the tone very steady and reliable, albeit a bit dry.
Joshua Caldwell delivers lyrics as almost spoken-word, impressionistic of some Lou Reed vocals in his Velvet Underground years, but Caldwell refrains from exploring emotive levels or incorporating anything melodic. His attitude throughout the album suggests a resigned detachment, a theme paralleled by the instrumentals which often shy away from stirring tonal changes.
Les Blanks use some unique instruments to spice up some of their songs. A peppy blues harp in “Picture Show” matched with some rapid drumming and Caldwell’s shouting lyrics turns the piece turns into something like an eclectic Modest Mouse track, without a defined focus. Some jazz piano steps up the swank in “La Reina” as lyrics cover the not-so-glamorous aspects of the daily L.A. drudge declaring “It grows more on me every day,” and Caldwell’s tone suggests a decided indifference.
“Shoot The Horse” is an album that will have an audience in those looking for some down-beat punk/blues rock with a jaded and easygoing sound. Les Blanks is clearly made up of talented musicians, and hopefully they will choose to experiment further in both the melodic and emotional range of their future songs.
They will he having an album release party on May 22 at Spaceland. More info here.
Photo by Jeaneen Lund via myspace.com/lesblanks
Subscribe to our RSS Feed And checkout our coffee competition to win a $30 gift voucher to your favourite coffee shop : click here
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
2 responses so far ↓
1 chance roberts // May 20, 2008 at 11:00 am
bummer i’m going to miss the release party. these guys rawk.
2 Music Tonight: Les Blanks, Weather Underground, EL-P | LA.CityZine.com - Los Angeles // May 22, 2008 at 12:01 pm
[...] bands tonight to help you celebrate including two bands which have been featured on LA.CityZine Les Blanks and The Weather Underground. So here you are, tonight’s bands with maps, tickets information, [...]
Leave a Comment