Smokelahoma - Bucket Of Clams (2007)

Recorded in the sweltering 120 degree heat of Boulder City Nevada, "Bucket of Clams" is a fine new release by a band that has been an underground secret in the Northwest for the past eight years. Upright bass, Hammond organ, Telecaster guitars and old floor board vocals creates an honest vibe that any fan of Americana music would dig. High powered cannabis with ice cold beer nestled in a chilly cascade mountain stream. People that like this flavor...like it alot!

Smokelahoma are about as ‘under the radar’ as you can get – this is actually their sixth album, but they are probably unknown beyond a small circle of friends. With a little word of mouth, some upcoming live shows in the spring, and more than a little luck, that may just change. Previous albums did a decent enough job in highlighting the songwriting talents and Dylanesque vocal stylings of main man Mike Morton, but Bucket of Clams is a huge leap forward.

An awful lot of time and care went into making this album, and it shows. There is a more countrified approach than in previous albums, and not in a Brooks and Dunne type of way; rather this recalls the sound coming out of Laurel Canyon somewhere around 1974, when west coast rock snaked it’s way into Nashville territory and eventually spawned a whole new subgenre. There’s some similarity with Nashville Skyline era Dylan, too, and that’s only fitting because Morton really sounds like Dylan after a quick encounter with sandpaper – unmistakably similar, but sweeter and less grating. Thankfully for those who might wonder if Morton might border on the derivative, the songwriting bears no resemblance to the erstwhile Mr. Zimmerman – Morton is much more direct and sometimes almost confessional in his lyrics, and produces choruses so damned catchy I’ve found myself singing them around the office.

The music is equally engaging – Morton plays some effective acoustic for a nice rhythm base, while Rusty Urie on electric lead provides some scintillating solos, and Dan Klepinger – who some of you may know from his stints as part of Dark Star Orchestra over the last couple of years – displays some major props on piano and Hammond.

The songs are evenly divided between upbeat rockers and slightly slower, more countrified tunes, and both approaches yield their own distinctive pleasures. Opener, "Let It Roll" is a sprightly shuffle with some really nice pedal steel courtesy of Terry Greene , and it’s followed by the Cosmic Crucified, a slight yet sweet story of wasting away an afternoon doing not much of anything that, for some strange reason, I could see being covered successfully by Jimmy Buffet –maybe it’s the insanely catchy chorus.

"High Side" opens with the buzz of an amp turned up to the max, promising an outbreak of some serious rocking , and the crunchy chords that follow don’t disappoint. A driving tune with some very effective multitracking on Morton’s voice and some terrific to-the-point solos from Urie that don’t waste a note, it builds to a rousing finish with Klepinger wailing away on the Hammond and Morton delivering some impassioned vocals. My favorite track on the album, this could turn out be a serious barnstormer in a live setting.

"Bread of Life Mission", a wistful tale of hard times , displays some great harmonies and some effective piano fills, and a raucous cover of Arlo Guthrie’s drug smuggling ditty Coming Into Los Angeles makes me wonder why someone hadn’t covered this song much sooner. "Smoke a Dooby" is the most traditionally country sounding song here, and Blind Fiddler displays an almost reggae beat, which mixes things up nicely but is probably the slightest song on the album, while "18 Wheels" is almost Poco-like in its use of pedal steel welded to a truck driving themed straight rocker , and "Jesus on a Candle" displays Morton’s most obtuse songwriting – I’ve listened to it a dozen times and still don’t know what it’s about, despite some evocative imagery in the words – combined with the most delicate and pretty arrangement on the album. Drummer Steve Housewright provides a funky, grinding backbeat for "Tinka", which really lets loose at the end and lets Urie rock out like Eddie Van Halen for a short while. And finally "Kickin’ Walls" end things on a sweet, relaxed tune – just Morton and Urie on acoustic guitars with some bongos in the background .

I don’t doubt that you’ve never heard of Smokelahoma, but I fervently hope that one day soon you will, because music this damned good deserves a much wider audience. This year has already seen some great albums hit my mailbox , and this may well be the finest – straight ahead song-based country rock of a type I really didn’t think would get made any more. Take a chance on an unknown band and grab this – you will not be disappointed.

Track List:

01 Let It Roll
02 Cosmic Crucified (Bucket Of Clams)
03 High Side
04 Bread Of Life Mission
05 Coming Into Los Angeles
06 Smoke A Dooby
07 Blind Fiddler
08 18 Wheels
09 Jesus On A Candle
10 Tinka
11 Kickin' Walls (Song 342)

Note: Some explicit lyrics

Quality: CBR 320 Kbps 44100 Joint Stereo
Size: 98.24MB
Genre:Country | Country Rock | Songwriter

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