MONDAY BLUES REVIEW
Act: Twilight Trio
Album Title: Finally
Made It Home
Awards: Austin Blues
Society Self-Produced CD Competition, 2014, winner
Ginger Rum: Alright!
Our first Monday Blues Review, and it’s a winner.
I Ain’t No Woman: Literally.
1st place in this year’s ABS Self-Produced CD Competition
GR: We hear many
bands introduce a song as “delta blues.”
I often strain to hear what they are talking about. A slide guitar does not a delta blues make. There are definitely songs here, however,
that take me right to the bayous.
IANW: What about alligators?
Scotchy: Dude, I saw
the biggest alligator last week when we were out hiking-
GR: Have y’all seen
those albino alligators?
IANW: So. Delta Blues.
GR: Right.
IANW: So we have
about 50/50 originals and covers with this album. The choices for covers are fairly tasteful –
nothing that has been beaten to death.
Everything blends in. The music on this album really seems designed to
support the singer, and it does a very good job of that.
GR: Yes, the
arrangements are seamless, and really allow the vocalists’ voices to stand
out. Joanna Ramirez’s sultry and soulful
mezzo-soprano is an absolute treat.
Looking at their trio, I am amazed at how they take such a unique blend
of instruments and come up with something that sounds so smooth and rich.
IANW: Mmm. Tasty mezzo-soprano.
GR: Personally, my
two favorite songs are Why Did We Have to Say Goodbye and Finally Made It Home.
We also find some good delta sound on In The Dark. The first is just a damn fine ballad. You can really hear the emotion in the
singer’s voice. The interesting chord
choices lean more towards a country blues progression, but there is nothing
wrong with that.
IANW: Not at
all. Nice and lazy guitar – lazy is a
good thing. It fits well. It’s tasteful.
GR: This whole song
is tasteful. I can’t wait to hear them
play it live sometime. People should be
slow dancing.
IANW: Finally Made It
Home is the one that has a bit of a Beach Boys influence, crossed with
Dylan. Or maybe a Dylan influence with a
touch of Beach Boys.
GR: Six of one, half
dozen of another…
IANW: The harmonies
are great. [IANW is already starting to
learn it on guitar]
GR: And a sweet
harmonica. Mmm. I love blues harp. Then there's Livin' Hell, with great interplay between the vocal and harmonica parts.
IANW: They really like that turn around. One more time! Nope, one more time! It’s very John Lee Hooker-like.
IANW: Let’s not
forget the covers. They almost sound
like originals.
GR: They have some
amazing interpretations that allow them to bring their own style and sound to
songs that have their staying power in their own right. I love the subtle, precise harmonica on Love Is a Losing Game. Its haunting counterpoint accents the lyrics so beautifully.
IANW: And, then there
is their cover of I Just Wanna Make Love To You.
GR: They totally changed it up!
IANW: Yep, it’s quite a change up.
GR: I really like
it. Toe-tapping good music there, yes it
is. The syncopation is great.
IANW: Mmm hmm. It’s
kind of addicting.
GR: We also really
liked their cover of Trouble Blues.
IANW: Sweet. Some Blues guitar.
GR: In summary?
IANW: OK. Final
thoughts. While overall, we really like and recommend this album, the snare on
the first two tracks was pounding my ears to death. But, the rest of the album,
they seemed to have pulled that back some.
The whole album blends well, and is very tasteful. Many of their songs are in G, but it works.
GR: Yes, I agree
about that snare. Outside that, though,
this is a damn fine self-produced album.
It doesn’t hurt that these musicians are absolutely stellar, and the
music selection really fits well together.
So, bottom line – we enjoyed listening to this album. It had some really awesome things, the
musicians were tight, and the songs catchy.
We definitely recommend it as a buy, and hope to see this trio on stage
soon!
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