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Here it is, Folks. The record of the year. Hands down. If you
were to hear only one record this year, make certain that this
is it. Richard Buckner's latest record is full of the stuff
of legend. Made up of songs filled with empathy and deeply seeded
emotions, Dents And Shells is as near to perfection as
any alt-country record ever has been.
Not immediately the most country sounding of Buckner's efforts,
the record moves from a slowly lilting acoustic guitar based melancholia
("Firsts"), to the electric charge of rock'n'roll pounding
("Rafters"). Buried in the middle are beautifully arranged
tracks, thick with guitar drones, electric pianos, and decidedly
emotional vocals. Acoustic guitars reign on these tracks, driving
home the attitude of the songs perfectly. "Straight"
is a delicately striking showcase of Buckner's maturing songwriting
talents, standing out even among these amazing songs as being
extremely well-written and poignantly expressive. The album wraps
with a strangely ephemeral track, "As The Waves Will Always
Roll", that contains a very Roger Waters-era Pink
Floyd sound, and leaves the listener in a very euphoric state
of melancholia.
Richard Buckner has not only taken the sonic alt-country music
that he has been purveying for the past decade and improved it,
he has taken it to a divine level. The songs on Dents And Shells
are sure to make certain Buckner's inclusion on the list of timeless
classics, in the company of such songwriting luminaries as Johnny
Cash, Steve Earle and Jay Farrar. And rightly
so.
-Embo Blake
Track Listing:
1. A Chance Counsel
2. Firsts
3. Invitation
4. Straight
5. Her
6. Charmers
7. Fuse
8. Rafters
9. Picture Day
10. As The Waves Will Always Roll
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