BEACHWOOD SPARKS: BEACHWOOD SPARKS (2000)
1) Desert Skies; 2) Ballad Of
Never Rider; 3) Silver Morning After; 4) Singing Butterfly; 5) Sister Rose; 6)
This Is What It Feels Like; 7) Canyon Ride; 8) The Reminder; 9) The Calming
Seas; 10) New Country; 11) Something I Don't Recognize; 12) Old Sea Miner; 13)
See, Oh Three; 14) Sleeping Butterfly.
It is said that the name «Beachwood Sparks» was
coined together by the band's original drummer, Jimi Hey, out of the names of
two adjacent streets in Burbank, California, native to the band's founding
father and bass player Brent Rademaker. Whatever be the circumstances, the choice
is brilliant. «Sparks», of course, suggests a psychedelic orientation,
something along the lines of Tommy-style
noise freakouts, which these guys certainly have a penchant for; but choosing
«Beachwood» as a title modifier suggests something earthy, rootsy, and
eco-clean — and is, consequently, in perfect agreement with the band's
country-rock orientation.
The roots of this band reach all the way up to
the «space cowboy» era of The Notorious
Byrd Brothers, Easy Rider, and
such — in fact, this categorization is so obvious that it gets verbally
rehashed in just about any text that
has to do with Beachwood Sparks. It is hard for me to judge in which particular
location on the long line of evolution of that genre they happen to stand,
since I am no big fan of country, be it «authentic» or «astral». However, they
have such a good sense of balance that it is illegitimate to brand them as
«country» — being no foes to distorted riffs, deep folk, sunny martial pop, or
noisy interludes. Steel and slide guitar melodies lie at the core of their
sound, but they have a pretty impressive «sonic periphery» as well.
This pretty little self-titled debut is fairly
charming, if not altogether memorable. The band's weakest point is interesting
songwriting — pretty much the bane of all country-based music, I guess — but
they try, and, every once in a while, come out with a winner: my personal
favorite is ʽThe Calming Seasʼ, with a pedal steel part from Dave Scher that's just
as pretty as a songbird, but way catchier. On the rockier side, there is
ʽSister Roseʼ, steadily galloping along on a lighthearted merry note, then
gradually melting away in a sea of noise before, right at the very end,
emerging once again to a steady country-rock mode of operation. (It actually
seems to be a rip-off of some old Flying Burrito Brothers tune, but nothing
exact pops to mind).
The album wins over through its complete lack
of «pretense» — even the loud tunes are really quite quiet, including the band's
two-part and three-part vocals, harmonizing together in a soft, high-pitched,
semi-whispered manner. The arrangements, which may spill over into the noisy /
trippy without a single warning and just as easily snap out of that state, are
only as much experimental as they can allow themselves without breaking up
with old-timey traditions of melody and harmony — and the basic idea of the
album is a good old-fashioned celebration of peace, beauty, and idealism, without
any excesses or overplaying.
Almost inevitably, the album tends to drag a
bit, particularly in its slower parts. When they really put their backs to it,
the band members are capable of generating a convincing atmosphere — for
instance, on the brief instrumental interludes ʽSinging Butterflyʼ and
ʽSleeping Butterflyʼ (despite the titles, there is not much difference between
the two) where minimalistic steel guitar and keyboard parts merge together in a
dreamy, otherworldly landscape populated with alien creatures making odd
sounds («butterflies» don't really cut it, or maybe they're giant prehistoric
butterflies equipped with powerful sonic generators). But just as often, they don't put their backs to it — ʽThe
Reminderʼ and ʽNew Countryʼ are downright boring, with the latter of the two
realizing this way too late, when, for its last thirty seconds, it launches
into a fast country groove.
Nevertheless, on the whole this is a positive
experience, heartily recommended to all the fans of a good, not too
professional, but inventive, steel guitar sound, and to all those who like
their «Americana» a little less self-conscious and a little more experimental
than we usually see it. Maybe the idea
of a band like Beachwood Sparks sounds more exciting than the actual band turns
out to be, but that does not preclude ʽThe Calming Seasʼ from being one of the
prettiest soft-rock numbers of the year 2000, so I would like to present the
record with a modest thumbs up. Sure they aren't Wilco-level, but there
is something to be said about the
humble guy who doesn't like taking too many risks along the way.
Check "Beachwood Sparks" (CD) on Amazon
Check "Beachwood Sparks" (MP3) on Amazon
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