With a name like Memphis 59, and an album cover like a rusty truck you may think that the “Ragged” moniker would ring true. But instead of a rough edged, dirty sound, Memphis 59 come off as clean as a whistle. Grammy-winner John Jennings has cleaned up their sound to a fault. It’s squeaky clean. In fact, although the band claims Paul Westerberg and Son Volt as influences, they seem much more like the Jayhawks without the irresistible hooks. Scott Kurt’s vocals float over it with a sound that reminds me of Natalie Maines in male form. No growl, no ragged edge. It’s roots rock as clean and poppy as it can be.
When you hear the first vocals in “Back to Me,” Kurt Scott really sounds like a Gary Louris. It’s a band that seems somewhere in between country and rock. I’m not sure if it’s this record, but this track pushes much more into the pop side of the spectrum. “Killing Time” sounds like rock-style Dixie chicks. “She was 33 back in 78 / Had two young boys . . . ” Hell the lyrics even sound like they’re not that far from “Wide Open Spaces.”
Now I think that comparisons are inevitable for any reviewer. Hell we hear many similar songs over and over again. After all, music grows with familiarity (that’s why pop music is based on repeated melodies and choruses). There’s nothing wrong with sounding like somebody else. The implication really is that sounding like someone else really means that you can’t quite live up to the original. Memphis 59 manages to shake some of these comparisons in the slide guitar sounds of “Quit Kickin’ My Heart Around.” The instrumentation has a more authentic rootsy appeal. The vocals lack the gruff feel.
The songs seems like they want to truly break out into nasty Rock & Roll, but they never quite get there. “My, Myself and Eyes” is a perfect example. The guitar is layered almost too well. The vocals are WAY out front. It almost sounds like a pristine Nashville studio mix. I feel like I can’t really get a sense of this band without seeing them in concert. Hopefully next time they’ll kick out the grammy-winning producer and save a few bucks. I think their songs would sound a lot more like the “Ragged Glory” that it wants to be.
About the author: Jeff is a teacher in the Boston area. When not buried correcting papers, Jeff can be found plucking various stringed instruments and listening to all types of americana music.