The Gourds,
Heavy Ornamentals



Label: Eleven Thirty Records

(4 out of 5)

The Gourds produce rhythms so infectious, my 4-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter spontaneously started dancing within the first few measures of Heavy Ornamentals, the band's eighth album. Theirs is an intoxicating hillbilly country-rock sound that appeals to young and old alike, with more than a hint of jazzy backporch improvisation to keep the sophisticates interested.

This time around the band chose to record in analog, with musical mistakes and miracles alike making the final cut. It's an approach well suited for the Gourds' organic, lo-fi sound.

Take the warm piano, bass, and snare of "Our Patriarch" (listen), a heartrending work of loss and mourning. The tonal richness evident here just isn't possible in the digital world (at least not authentically).

That analog vibrancy is a recurring theme throughout the album, from the Cajun rhythms of "Hooky Junk" (listen) to the Tex-Mex Doug Sahm tribute of "Shake the Chandelier" (listen), the rap-meets-jam of "Burn the Honeysuckle" (listen) to the folk-rock of "Pill Bug Blues" (listen).

Heavy Ornamentals is an utterly enjoyable, thoroughly modern album recorded with classic 20th century techniques.

January 24, 2006