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| THE EX-HUSBANDS s/t (Tarhut Records) Recipe for an Alternative Country band : Take a handful of young musicians who have all grown up under the undeniable influence of country life and music; encourage adolescent discovery of most other musical genres, as well as Life in the Big City; leave to settle, and as they mature they will hark back to their roots, starting to adapt their inherent country leanings to fit in with a wider sphere of influence. The results are familiar to us all. An idealised and cliched paradigm, I know, but relevant because the opposite is true of the Ex-Husbands. This three-piece are from the Big City (New York, to be precise) where they were raised on 'most other musical genres' and it was these establishments that really held back their efforts to proceed as an all-out country band. They did, however, manage to record this, their eponymous debut, relocating to Nashville shortly afterwards, where receptions appear to have been positively warmer.So, can we trust an album whose creators may merely be imposters, writing country songs by numbers and transplanting themselves onto the scene with little or no authenticity? Well, yes, we can. The Ex-Husbands have such charisma that from beginning to end one is drawn into their addictive and deceptively simple sound in the same way that one of their imagined cowboys might be to a whiskey bar. Despite all-round musical brilliance, that little bit extra comes from the voice, hands and mind of singer, guitarist and song-writer, Anders Thomsen. Sounding like Waylon Jennings with a guitar style somewhere between JJ Cale and Keith Richards, good taste and buckets of charm are exuded at all times. The same can be said of his songs, combining a talent for evocative narratives with a keen sense of humour, as showcased on tracks such as Johnny Walker Redneck ('He drives a North Star Cadillac wearing cowboy boots')and Tequila, Salt and Lime ('Only two days late for work, but they fired me anyway'.) Further testament to the band's genius, is the speed and paranoia fuelled account of fugitive life, 'Run Until I Die', which reveals a band capable of shifting up into that extra gear, which must make for some electrifying live performances, and reveals a versatility that should lead to some erstwhile sequels to this album. There should be no doubt that this record has the makings of a minor classic, especially as a debut, resplendent with it's Slacker-Country anthems such as, 'I Have a Ball', 'Country Speed', and the afore-mentioned 'Tequila, Salt and Lime', but it is on the more sentimental songs ('Love You Always', 'Lovin (Like it's the End of the World)') where the lack of authenticity can make one doubt the bands sincerity. Hopefully the strong reputation earned on the back of this release will reassure the group that the 'scene' is behind them, allowing them to embrace their NY past, as other acts address their country roots, and to get on in earnest with re-writing that Old Recipe Book. AG. |
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