Artist: The Cave Singers
Album: Welcome Joy
Year: 2009
Grade: 3 pretzels
The Cave Singers are a Seattle-based act that surprised just about everybody when their debut album appeared a couple of years ago. The trio, comprised of singer Pete Quirk, guitarist Derek Fudesco and drummer Marty Lund, were all coming from other musical projects with a fairly electric, indie-rock-oriented sound, with Fudesco’s Pretty Girls Make Graves being the most prominent. However, the Cave Singers’ debut was chock full of low-key, folk-flavored acoustic tunes that sounded ready to be played by bearded loners in cabins all across the Pacific Northwest.
Welcome Joy quashes any last doubts that the trio would return to a more rock-centric background. The Cave Singers’ sophomore effort is another well-played slice of retro folk emulations, drawing on a familiar blend of influences (I hear a hell of a lot of Woody Guthrie in here) to create some pleasant sounds. The band also have a bit of a wild card in Pete Quirk, who’s voice actually brings to mind a very un-folky influence: Fleetwood Mac. Somehow, Quirk’s hoarse-yet-whispy voice recalls both Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, sounding like a passable imitation of both at times. Maybe my priorities need some readjusting, but I find that rather impressive.
The struggle that Welcome Joy faces is that it has to make its songs stand out against decades of similar music. Quirk’s voice helps, but too many songs on the album fade from the listener’s memory as soon as they finish. I wouldn’t be able to pick gentle acoustic ballads like “VV” out of a lineup of similar songs if I was forced to. Generally, the more driving the Cave Singers allow themselves to be, the more memorable the song gets, especially on the rough, gritty “At The Cut”. It’s when they lapse into the calmer, more restrained stuff that they start to sound like a band trying to cover “Landslide” for the umpteenth time.
Welcome Joy sounds very nice. The musicianship is very deft and the recording suits the style the band seems to be aiming for. However, nice is not enough when it comes to folk music, at least in this critic’s book. The depth and traditions around folk music are so deep and full of history, it takes something very unique to really jump out at me. The Cave Singers are operating in a genre where the differences between musical acts can be very subtle and their honest-but-traditional music lacks the spark that screams “pay attention to me!” Even with Quirk's unique voice moving the music along, they're missing that special something that elevates them above the ranks of similar artists.
Welcome Joy quashes any last doubts that the trio would return to a more rock-centric background. The Cave Singers’ sophomore effort is another well-played slice of retro folk emulations, drawing on a familiar blend of influences (I hear a hell of a lot of Woody Guthrie in here) to create some pleasant sounds. The band also have a bit of a wild card in Pete Quirk, who’s voice actually brings to mind a very un-folky influence: Fleetwood Mac. Somehow, Quirk’s hoarse-yet-whispy voice recalls both Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, sounding like a passable imitation of both at times. Maybe my priorities need some readjusting, but I find that rather impressive.
The struggle that Welcome Joy faces is that it has to make its songs stand out against decades of similar music. Quirk’s voice helps, but too many songs on the album fade from the listener’s memory as soon as they finish. I wouldn’t be able to pick gentle acoustic ballads like “VV” out of a lineup of similar songs if I was forced to. Generally, the more driving the Cave Singers allow themselves to be, the more memorable the song gets, especially on the rough, gritty “At The Cut”. It’s when they lapse into the calmer, more restrained stuff that they start to sound like a band trying to cover “Landslide” for the umpteenth time.
Welcome Joy sounds very nice. The musicianship is very deft and the recording suits the style the band seems to be aiming for. However, nice is not enough when it comes to folk music, at least in this critic’s book. The depth and traditions around folk music are so deep and full of history, it takes something very unique to really jump out at me. The Cave Singers are operating in a genre where the differences between musical acts can be very subtle and their honest-but-traditional music lacks the spark that screams “pay attention to me!” Even with Quirk's unique voice moving the music along, they're missing that special something that elevates them above the ranks of similar artists.
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