Search - June Star :: Sugarbird

Deep & Black

Lee Armstrong | Winterville, NC United States | 06/04/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"For the third June Star release, lead singer Andrew Grimm has a new band to back his words & music. On 8 of the tracks, it is only Grimm & multi-talented Tim Bracken. Sugarbird's sound is dense alt-country with heavy electric guitars often churning on slow to midtempo tracks with lyrics that show a somber side of life. Professional reviewers' likening their sound to late era Uncle Tupelo or Son Volt fit for me too. The lyrics here are for feel, often not making a great deal of sense grammatically, but having an emotional impact. In the dense "Ohio" Grimm sings, "It's deep & black, straight & wide, where she put her sons, straight & wide, where she put her sons, deaf & off-course." My favorite track is the most upbeat on the CD, "Once Knew," with Grimm sounding like Merle Haggard meets the Dillards. Grimm & Bracken play joyfully and then abruptly shut the door to end the track. The homage to Grimm's hometown is musically joyful on "Baltimore" while the lyrics recount a concert to which no one came. "Mexico" is a somber tune with a bit of Gram Parsons-like irony as Grimm sings, "I can't shake the words stuck to your breath, 'honey, I've got to go.'" The title track is typical of the sound with a slow thundering guitars reeling out a pleasant melody behind Grimm's aching vocals, "You're shadowed in fall & eased on out over & over again, picked up & shook by your roots & held off another day." If there were a weakness of the set, a bit more variety in tempo and distinctiveness between tracks would help. But June Star's is a good sound, one that grows the more it hits the changer! Enjoy!"