RED MOLLY – THE RED ALBUM
2014 – Red Molly Records
Rather than settling for a nice gentle, melodic, harmony laden sound as so many of their peers do, these three talented vocalists bring a little edginess and versatility to their gorgeous harmonies and a large slice of diversity to their songs. As far as I can ascertain this is the trio’s sixth album plus an e.p. but there have also been quite a number of solo ventures, hardly surprising when you consider that each of them has the talent and the vocal cords to succeed on their own although I must say, and this is probably unfair because I have only heard two of the solo albums, together they really have something special. Not that the solo albums were bad, in fact on the contrary, they were excellent rootsy singer songwriter albums but they just didn’t seem to have that little sprinkle of magic dust that this recording possesses.
The trio consists of Laurie MacAllister on bass, Abbie Gardner, dobro and Molly Venter on guitar with all three contributing lead and harmony vocals. The instrumentation is never overbearing but is certainly varied. Having said all that this is country music as most people recognize it, but when you listen to it in some depth it becomes obvious there is a lot more to their music than that of much of the mainstream. Their own songs, some of which are co writes, are all tremendous songs and there are five covers of varying quality. When I say ‘varying’ fairly obviously the vocals are always exceptional, as is the playing and arrangements, it’s just that it seemed that Paul Simons Homeward Bound comes across as nice but unnecessary; something to play live but with not a lot to say on a c.d, although I’m sure many will like the song; it’s just a personal thought. Compare this to their reading of Richard Thompsons 1952 Vincent Black Lightning which is imbued with the sense of drama that its writer intended and with a lovely rolling melodicism added to the lovely lead and gorgeous harmonies and perhaps you will hear what I mean. Of course when it comes to their own songs, what lifts them above many of their peers is the writing. Most of them have a depth and an often dramatic quality that removes any overt smoothness from the texture of the album. It is not just a question of downbeat songs although some are, in fact there are a variety of emotions, all approached with a sense of realism and sensitivity that adds up to a bunch of ‘mature’ tales rather than just simple love songs. Most of the arrangements add to that dramatic quality, bringing a large slice of originality to the genre that helps set them apart from their peers. Of course with Ken Coomer (Uncle Tupelo and Wilco) producing the album there was never likely to be much about the album that would fall into the ‘twee’ category. Instead he goes for often subtle little instrumental changes and powerful percussion that give the album much of its ‘edginess.’ Fairly obviously the vocals take care of themselves!
The albums opening song Clinch River Blues goes a long way to explaining what I mean about the variety in their music. It is a gorgeous song, full of drama and intensity from the instrumentation and the arrangement but just as full of beauty thanks to the lead and harmony vocals. The melody is also catchy on a song that is very much driven, and in some ways highlighted, by the repetitive percussion, with dobro, acoustic guitar and bass slowly joining in, whilst those harmonies bring an angelic otherworldly feel. Willow Tree starts with a nice mellow acoustic guitar and beautiful dodro before Molly’s gorgeous character laden vocal comes in. She is eventually joined by Laurie and Abbie on harmonies on a tale that is full of drama and intensity in much the same way as the old ‘murder ballads.’ When It’s All Wrong is propelled by an excellent percussion on a beautiful lost love song with Abbie’s almost sultry lead vocal creating a slightly unusual atmosphere but when you add the whistling, dobro and the harmonies there is a slightly sinister otherworldly atmosphere. Finally, Lay Down Your Burden includes a driving percussion and bass with excellent intervention by electric guitar and the usual committed and mature lead and harmony vocals on a song that could just as easily be a gospel song as love song.
It would be true to say, although I know I shouldn’t generalize, that this is not the sort of album that usually has much appeal for me but the quality of the writing, arrangements and those vocals drew me into this tremendous recording. It doesn’t take long to realize that this is not a typical formulaic trio album built on little but beautiful lead and harmony vocals. Of course the vocals are beautiful but there is also a strong realism to most of the stories and above all an indefinable edginess that confirms this trio is something special. If you have never heard of Red Molly buy the album and I guarantee it won’t be long before, as I’m going to, you start investigating their back catalogue. Gorgeous album!
http://www.redmolly.com/
Rather than settling for a nice gentle, melodic, harmony laden sound as so many of their peers do, these three talented vocalists bring a little edginess and versatility to their gorgeous harmonies and a large slice of diversity to their songs. As far as I can ascertain this is the trio’s sixth album plus an e.p. but there have also been quite a number of solo ventures, hardly surprising when you consider that each of them has the talent and the vocal cords to succeed on their own although I must say, and this is probably unfair because I have only heard two of the solo albums, together they really have something special. Not that the solo albums were bad, in fact on the contrary, they were excellent rootsy singer songwriter albums but they just didn’t seem to have that little sprinkle of magic dust that this recording possesses.
The trio consists of Laurie MacAllister on bass, Abbie Gardner, dobro and Molly Venter on guitar with all three contributing lead and harmony vocals. The instrumentation is never overbearing but is certainly varied. Having said all that this is country music as most people recognize it, but when you listen to it in some depth it becomes obvious there is a lot more to their music than that of much of the mainstream. Their own songs, some of which are co writes, are all tremendous songs and there are five covers of varying quality. When I say ‘varying’ fairly obviously the vocals are always exceptional, as is the playing and arrangements, it’s just that it seemed that Paul Simons Homeward Bound comes across as nice but unnecessary; something to play live but with not a lot to say on a c.d, although I’m sure many will like the song; it’s just a personal thought. Compare this to their reading of Richard Thompsons 1952 Vincent Black Lightning which is imbued with the sense of drama that its writer intended and with a lovely rolling melodicism added to the lovely lead and gorgeous harmonies and perhaps you will hear what I mean. Of course when it comes to their own songs, what lifts them above many of their peers is the writing. Most of them have a depth and an often dramatic quality that removes any overt smoothness from the texture of the album. It is not just a question of downbeat songs although some are, in fact there are a variety of emotions, all approached with a sense of realism and sensitivity that adds up to a bunch of ‘mature’ tales rather than just simple love songs. Most of the arrangements add to that dramatic quality, bringing a large slice of originality to the genre that helps set them apart from their peers. Of course with Ken Coomer (Uncle Tupelo and Wilco) producing the album there was never likely to be much about the album that would fall into the ‘twee’ category. Instead he goes for often subtle little instrumental changes and powerful percussion that give the album much of its ‘edginess.’ Fairly obviously the vocals take care of themselves!
The albums opening song Clinch River Blues goes a long way to explaining what I mean about the variety in their music. It is a gorgeous song, full of drama and intensity from the instrumentation and the arrangement but just as full of beauty thanks to the lead and harmony vocals. The melody is also catchy on a song that is very much driven, and in some ways highlighted, by the repetitive percussion, with dobro, acoustic guitar and bass slowly joining in, whilst those harmonies bring an angelic otherworldly feel. Willow Tree starts with a nice mellow acoustic guitar and beautiful dodro before Molly’s gorgeous character laden vocal comes in. She is eventually joined by Laurie and Abbie on harmonies on a tale that is full of drama and intensity in much the same way as the old ‘murder ballads.’ When It’s All Wrong is propelled by an excellent percussion on a beautiful lost love song with Abbie’s almost sultry lead vocal creating a slightly unusual atmosphere but when you add the whistling, dobro and the harmonies there is a slightly sinister otherworldly atmosphere. Finally, Lay Down Your Burden includes a driving percussion and bass with excellent intervention by electric guitar and the usual committed and mature lead and harmony vocals on a song that could just as easily be a gospel song as love song.
It would be true to say, although I know I shouldn’t generalize, that this is not the sort of album that usually has much appeal for me but the quality of the writing, arrangements and those vocals drew me into this tremendous recording. It doesn’t take long to realize that this is not a typical formulaic trio album built on little but beautiful lead and harmony vocals. Of course the vocals are beautiful but there is also a strong realism to most of the stories and above all an indefinable edginess that confirms this trio is something special. If you have never heard of Red Molly buy the album and I guarantee it won’t be long before, as I’m going to, you start investigating their back catalogue. Gorgeous album!
http://www.redmolly.com/