Search - Tindersticks :: Tindersticks (Debut)

Something Different

Kurt Harding | Boerne TX | 03/31/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My musical tastes are wide-ranging and I am always looking for something different, something out of the ordinary to stimulate my interest. I stumbled across Tindersticks when I first heard Stuart Staples sing on the Lee Hazlewood tribute Total Lee!. I was instantly mesmerized by his delivery and so purchased a couple of Tindersticks CDs in order to get a better idea of what he is about. After a year of listening on and off, this CD has become a favorite both for me and for many friends.
Though some of the songs are a little quirky, the overall quality is enough to give this recording five stars. Here's what I like best: the driving, morose Whiskey and Water; the urgency of Milky Teeth; the rhythmic sway of Jism; the tense Drunk Tank; and the mysterious Paco de Renaldo's Dream. Through it all, Stuart Staples' original vocal style will keep your attention as will Tindersticks' instrumentation. He is sometimes hard to understand until you are used to him, and the one negative aspect of this CD is that no lyrics are provided in the liner notes.
Some have compared him to Nick Cave, but I don't see any resemblance except perhaps in the song lyrics. I can't really compare Staples and his band with anyone in my experience. Tindersticks is an original.
If you are musically adventurous and looking for something a little different from the SOS played on the radio, I recommend that you try Tindersticks starting with this CD here."