Search - The Mystics :: Satisfy You

Satisfies Me

Larry White | AdultPop.com | 11/15/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Mystics are fronted by singer/songwriter/guitarist Jo Lilly (as in the pharmaceutical company, not the flower), who is also the driving force, if you will, of Boston blues band, Duke and the Drivers under the nom de plume Sam Deluxe. Besides brother Kenny White(piano), a visiting Mystic from the east, the band includes the well-traveled Bobby Keyes (lead guitar), Marty Ballou (bass), Dennis McDermott (drums), and Crispin Cioe (sax), all with credits down to their toenails.

This is one supremely talented band and just a terrific album. There is nothing fancy here, just basic, perfectly constructed ditties, mostly r&b (with smidgens of country & western, pop, and rock), not a dud among them. But the quality of playing and singing, the uniqueness of each arrangement, and the spot-on production raise the level far, far above what one, surely this one, would expect from such a limited palette. Lilly's voice, to these ears, is a delight, although one could see where it might be an acquired taste. A smoke-fed rasp, it bears a comforting resemblance to the missing-in-action voice of Willy DeVille or that of Southside Johnny with someone's hands wrapped firmly around his throat. At one point Lilly lets out what was probably intended to be a soulful scream only to have it emerge as a flawless, jewel-like squawk. He handles the uptempo stuff handily, but it is his vocals on those haunting and expressive blues ballads that pack the biggest wallop. Meanwhile the band provides solid support, particularly apparent in the fluid, versatile solo work of Keyes and White, bristling with originality and imagination. We understand from our baby bro, that, as we write this, The Mystics are already back in the studio preparing another album. We can't wait."