Artist: Alec Ounsworth
Album: Mo Beauty
Year: 2009
Grade: 4 pretzels
Well, it’s been a few years since the “blog band” bubble burst. Several years ago (let’s say, around 2005), so-called blog bands were all the rage. These were up-and-coming bands that were catapulted into the media awareness through the overwhelming amount of good press they received through online music review blogs and rabid fans pushing the music at anyone who would listen. Names like Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Tapes ‘N Tapes starting popping up in major music publications and a sub-sub-genre was born. Now, in more recent years, between a handful of lackluster follow albums and the shifting loyalties of those fickle bloggers, there’s been a definite backlash against these once-beloved groups. So, perhaps, now is the perfect time for Clap Your Hands Say Yeah frontman Alec Ounsworth to release his very first solo album.
Despite being only one-fifth of CYHSY, Ounsworth is, for all intents and purposes, the heart of his band. His piercing, nasal-to-the-point-of-absurdity voice is as distinctive as it is divisive. Love it or hate it, however, that voice is what makes Ounsworth unique and has won him an impressive cult fanbase. Therefore, when put in the spotlight of a solo career, Ounsworth sounds pretty much like he always has. His band has always been his show, so the only thing really different here are the musicians playing behind him.
Mind you, his current crop of session players, which include a number of impressive names from the New Orleans rock scene, produce some very un-CYHSY-ish sounds. Perhaps the most jarring is “Bones In The Grave”, which plays like Rain Dogs-era Tom Waits, with someone doing an impressive guitar impersonation of Marc Ribot, Waits’ longtime guitar wizard and collaborator. The only real difference between the song and any number of Waits’ is that ever-present, shrill voice. Likewise, the horn-led “That Is Not My Home (After Bruegel)” is unlike anything CYHSY ever recorded, with its powerful edge and tricky melody line. The quirky little guitar lines and sparkling keyboards of CYHSY have been replaced by bold artistic risks, breaking new ground for Ounsworth’s music.
Mind you, not all those artistic risks really work. Ounsworth’s two attempts at elegant acoustic ballads, “Holy, Holy, Holy Moses” and “Obscene Queen Bee #2”, don’t ever really click, becoming nothing more than odd, dreary strumming. In general, the middle of the album is weak, compared the exciting beginning tracks and the soaring closing track, “When You’ve No Eyes”. However, even during these mediocre songs, Ounsworth’s done an impressive job of counterbalancing his unique voice with music that complements its harsh tone. More and more on Mo Beauty, Ounsworth evokes the spirit of Bob Dylan or perhaps even Morrissey, in the sense that he doesn’t let a grating or limited voice constrain his music. Mo Beauty is one of the more impressive solo debuts in recent memory, establishing Ounsworth as a talented and enjoyable songwriter not afraid to work a bit outside the box. Hopefully, he’ll capitalize on the promise shown on this encouraging album and continue down his current path.
Despite being only one-fifth of CYHSY, Ounsworth is, for all intents and purposes, the heart of his band. His piercing, nasal-to-the-point-of-absurdity voice is as distinctive as it is divisive. Love it or hate it, however, that voice is what makes Ounsworth unique and has won him an impressive cult fanbase. Therefore, when put in the spotlight of a solo career, Ounsworth sounds pretty much like he always has. His band has always been his show, so the only thing really different here are the musicians playing behind him.
Mind you, his current crop of session players, which include a number of impressive names from the New Orleans rock scene, produce some very un-CYHSY-ish sounds. Perhaps the most jarring is “Bones In The Grave”, which plays like Rain Dogs-era Tom Waits, with someone doing an impressive guitar impersonation of Marc Ribot, Waits’ longtime guitar wizard and collaborator. The only real difference between the song and any number of Waits’ is that ever-present, shrill voice. Likewise, the horn-led “That Is Not My Home (After Bruegel)” is unlike anything CYHSY ever recorded, with its powerful edge and tricky melody line. The quirky little guitar lines and sparkling keyboards of CYHSY have been replaced by bold artistic risks, breaking new ground for Ounsworth’s music.
Mind you, not all those artistic risks really work. Ounsworth’s two attempts at elegant acoustic ballads, “Holy, Holy, Holy Moses” and “Obscene Queen Bee #2”, don’t ever really click, becoming nothing more than odd, dreary strumming. In general, the middle of the album is weak, compared the exciting beginning tracks and the soaring closing track, “When You’ve No Eyes”. However, even during these mediocre songs, Ounsworth’s done an impressive job of counterbalancing his unique voice with music that complements its harsh tone. More and more on Mo Beauty, Ounsworth evokes the spirit of Bob Dylan or perhaps even Morrissey, in the sense that he doesn’t let a grating or limited voice constrain his music. Mo Beauty is one of the more impressive solo debuts in recent memory, establishing Ounsworth as a talented and enjoyable songwriter not afraid to work a bit outside the box. Hopefully, he’ll capitalize on the promise shown on this encouraging album and continue down his current path.
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