LUKE TUCHSCHERER - PIECES
2018 - Clubhouse Records
'Pieces' is the third of Luke Tuchscherers 'solo' albums to have been reviewed on this website, following on from the excellent 'Always be true' in 2017 and 2014s 'You get so alone at times that it just makes sense.' These in turn followed the four albums, one of them live, that he made with the now defunct Whybirds, a band that, whilst enjoying some success, never received the accolades they so richly deserved. It is pleasing to say that when Luke 'went solo' there was no slackening of the quality and this recording by the now New York City resident singer songwriter not only confirms that but to my ears improves things with its more expansive sound and of course his usual high quality songwriting that will surely see him soon arriving at the top of the tree in the U.S.
Even on the songs on which the arrangements are quite dense the melodicism is never lost and Luke's vocals are always clear and evocative. There are tempo changes, some tremendous guitar solos and the arrangement of every song is as good as anyone could wish for. He is helped out by another former Whybird, Dave Banks on guitar, in fact this album, perhaps more so than it's solo predecessors, has the feel of an updated and more mature Whybirds recording on which, rather than working to a particular style, the songs themselves are allowed to set the style and pace, perhaps in a similar way to Neil Young's attitude throughout his career. I can imagine that when Luke wrote these songs, the song itself was of total importance and the generic style pretty much ignored, allowing the lyrics and melody to dictate. If correct it just goes to show what a feel the man has for 'Americana,' it being difficult to label this album with any precision as 'country rock' or 'alt. country,' although certainly the American roots music aspect is there for all to hear and in all its completely natural ambience and lack of artifice.
Album opener, Sudden getaway, has a dense, mid tempo 'country' rocking sound with Luke's evocative vocal driving a tale that has the feel of something Neil Young might have recorded several decades ago. As usual on his albums there is some tremendous playing, particularly the heavy guitar solo, presumably from Dave Banks (another former Whybird) and excellent vocal harmonies, with everything about the song blending perfectly. There is a hard driving guitar sound on the opening of Ain't what they say, as well as a hugely evocative vocal from Luke that seems to sail over the instrumentation on a tale that rises and falls in intensity, creating an epic, cinematic quality. The lovely gentle, chiming guitar intro on Charing Cross leads us to Luke's excellent vocal on a gorgeous ballad. The sound gradually solidifies with not just percussion and bass but also with Thomas Collison's piano sound. Eventually the song is further lifted by the blending of the harmonica, providing even more of a 'rootsy' atmosphere. It is a beautiful ballad that provides a nice break midway through the album but a break that provides just as much depth and power as any other song on the disc, enhancing the whole atmosphere of the album in a quite cinematic way. The chugging guitar intro with restrained keyboards are soon joined by bass and percussion on Requiem, another epic, cinematic story, this time Luke's take on the modern world, perhaps Britain in particular. It is a song that stretches out to nearly nine minutes without ever getting close to outstaying its welcome, thanks mainly to it being a great song but also the tremendous guitar playing that actually gives it the feel of something Neil Young could have conjured up with Crazy Horse. This is the sort of guitar driven song that Neil used to, and occasionally still does, excel at and this incredible slice of modern day philosophy is not put in the shade by the great Canadian singer songwriter, in fact Luke's vocals are superior.
Several times above I've mentioned at least vague comparisons with Neil Young which may seem to some to be over the top. After all, Neil Young has been at the top of the game for over half a century and only time will tell if Luke has the lasting talent to maintain his current quality, although from the perspective of his first decade or more the signs are good, but there are actually also some, certainly unwitting, similarities. They are not necessarily in style, although Luke is as capable a 'rocker' as Neil Young, but more the fact that Luke is unafraid to write about whatever subject matter comes to mind, in much the same way as Young, and similarly is definitely not a slave to any particular style, being stylistically driven by the song rather than making it fit any preconceived pigeon hole or genre. This is a tremendous album by a hugely talented 'singer songwriter' who not only lives in the U.S but is also challenging the best that country has to offer in this loosest of all 'genres.'
https://www.luketuchscherer.co.uk/
'Pieces' is the third of Luke Tuchscherers 'solo' albums to have been reviewed on this website, following on from the excellent 'Always be true' in 2017 and 2014s 'You get so alone at times that it just makes sense.' These in turn followed the four albums, one of them live, that he made with the now defunct Whybirds, a band that, whilst enjoying some success, never received the accolades they so richly deserved. It is pleasing to say that when Luke 'went solo' there was no slackening of the quality and this recording by the now New York City resident singer songwriter not only confirms that but to my ears improves things with its more expansive sound and of course his usual high quality songwriting that will surely see him soon arriving at the top of the tree in the U.S.
Even on the songs on which the arrangements are quite dense the melodicism is never lost and Luke's vocals are always clear and evocative. There are tempo changes, some tremendous guitar solos and the arrangement of every song is as good as anyone could wish for. He is helped out by another former Whybird, Dave Banks on guitar, in fact this album, perhaps more so than it's solo predecessors, has the feel of an updated and more mature Whybirds recording on which, rather than working to a particular style, the songs themselves are allowed to set the style and pace, perhaps in a similar way to Neil Young's attitude throughout his career. I can imagine that when Luke wrote these songs, the song itself was of total importance and the generic style pretty much ignored, allowing the lyrics and melody to dictate. If correct it just goes to show what a feel the man has for 'Americana,' it being difficult to label this album with any precision as 'country rock' or 'alt. country,' although certainly the American roots music aspect is there for all to hear and in all its completely natural ambience and lack of artifice.
Album opener, Sudden getaway, has a dense, mid tempo 'country' rocking sound with Luke's evocative vocal driving a tale that has the feel of something Neil Young might have recorded several decades ago. As usual on his albums there is some tremendous playing, particularly the heavy guitar solo, presumably from Dave Banks (another former Whybird) and excellent vocal harmonies, with everything about the song blending perfectly. There is a hard driving guitar sound on the opening of Ain't what they say, as well as a hugely evocative vocal from Luke that seems to sail over the instrumentation on a tale that rises and falls in intensity, creating an epic, cinematic quality. The lovely gentle, chiming guitar intro on Charing Cross leads us to Luke's excellent vocal on a gorgeous ballad. The sound gradually solidifies with not just percussion and bass but also with Thomas Collison's piano sound. Eventually the song is further lifted by the blending of the harmonica, providing even more of a 'rootsy' atmosphere. It is a beautiful ballad that provides a nice break midway through the album but a break that provides just as much depth and power as any other song on the disc, enhancing the whole atmosphere of the album in a quite cinematic way. The chugging guitar intro with restrained keyboards are soon joined by bass and percussion on Requiem, another epic, cinematic story, this time Luke's take on the modern world, perhaps Britain in particular. It is a song that stretches out to nearly nine minutes without ever getting close to outstaying its welcome, thanks mainly to it being a great song but also the tremendous guitar playing that actually gives it the feel of something Neil Young could have conjured up with Crazy Horse. This is the sort of guitar driven song that Neil used to, and occasionally still does, excel at and this incredible slice of modern day philosophy is not put in the shade by the great Canadian singer songwriter, in fact Luke's vocals are superior.
Several times above I've mentioned at least vague comparisons with Neil Young which may seem to some to be over the top. After all, Neil Young has been at the top of the game for over half a century and only time will tell if Luke has the lasting talent to maintain his current quality, although from the perspective of his first decade or more the signs are good, but there are actually also some, certainly unwitting, similarities. They are not necessarily in style, although Luke is as capable a 'rocker' as Neil Young, but more the fact that Luke is unafraid to write about whatever subject matter comes to mind, in much the same way as Young, and similarly is definitely not a slave to any particular style, being stylistically driven by the song rather than making it fit any preconceived pigeon hole or genre. This is a tremendous album by a hugely talented 'singer songwriter' who not only lives in the U.S but is also challenging the best that country has to offer in this loosest of all 'genres.'
https://www.luketuchscherer.co.uk/