The Burden Brothers,
Buried in Your Black Heart

Label: Kirtland Records
Year: 2003

(3½ out of 5)

The Toadies were perhaps the most promising band to emerge out of the 1990s D/FW music scene, but the band's tumultuous existence and love/hate relationship with recording left many fans wanting more. The Toadies officially called it quits in 2001, snuffing out the slow burn that kept the band from meeting its potential.

Now, former lead Toadie Vaden Todd Lewis has joined with ex-Reverend Horton Heat drummer Taz Bentley to form the Burden Brothers. Buried in Your Black Heart, the Burden Brothers' first full-length album, might as well be called Toadies Redux. While the sound features a little more edge than Lewis's previous outfit, thanks to Bentley's tight rhythm work and ex-GWAR bassist Casey Orr's driving bass lines, the sound hasn't evolved all that much from Rubberneck.

The Brothers have been tearing up the Dallas rock scene over the past year or so, with the single "Beautiful Night" capturing extensive airplay as well as Best Song at the 2004 Dallas Observer Music Awards. "Beautiful Night" celebrates the kind of night that it's hard to find words to describe. The kind of night where anything and everything is possible—where just being feels magical: I don't want to talk, don't want to explain it / I don't want to fuck and I don't want to fight / It's only a feeling, it's fleeting and fading / It's all over the world and it's only tonight.

Most of the album's 10 other tracks stomp around the familiar territory of heartbreak and strained relationships. The most Toadies-esque song of the bunch is "Shadow," which has a creepy stalker aura similar to "Tyler": So won't you put a light on / And put it in your window / To let me know you're at home / To let me know you're alone / Know that I am waiting / Always watching / Let me follow.

The Brothers seem to try a little too hard at times, resulting in the hair metal muck "You're So God Damn Beautiful" (imagine hearing that shouted over and over as the chorus) and a couple other missteps. But given that the band has been together for only a few months, the bulk of the album shows the potential to carry on where The Toadies left off.

If you were a fan of The Toadies, you'll likely find yourself a fan of the Burden Brothers too. Even if you weren't, you still might find your head bobbing in time to the beat, just wishing there was a mosh pit close by.

Buy: Lone Star Music, Amazon

July 31, 2004