Being able to pigeonhole a band’s sound is useful to a music reviewer. Â It lets you describe them quickly before a blog reader clic…. Â But for those of you still with me, MilkDrive, and their latest album, Road From Home, spans not just 3-4 genres of music, but 3-4 eras of music.
The first cut, Dry Creek Inn, is a paean to the late 60’s sounds of Roger McGuinn and The Byrds. Â Except instead of the familiar 12-string sound, guitarist Noah Jeffries and mandolinist Dennis Ludiker have combined their instruments to create something that’s similar, but subtlety and enjoyable different. Â The second tune, Smokeblowers, moves forward a few years to the sort-of country rock of the acoustic Doobie Brothers before they went down the schmaltz pop route. Â This time, the difference is bass player Matt Mefford, who puts a Stanley Clark imprint on the song and makes you wish you could have Mark Ronson go back and remix a bunch of those early Eagles or Poco tunes.
From there, things shift to more of a jazzy feel. Â SoHo showcases the bands harmonies, with a very Bill Frissell-like guitar track. Â Changa Chang goes even further down the path with multiple key changes, jazz improvisation solos and a brief section in the end that could have come from Stravinsky. Â That segues directly into Nightmares By the Sea with it’s minor keys and tempo that would be right at home on an Arcade Fire recording.
One of the things I liked most on this album was the band’s ability to combine everything–instruments, vocals, writing–into a song that so cohesively sets a feeling. Â Stepping Stones with it’s short phrasings and clipped notes conveys thoroughly that sense of jumping from one rock to the next. Â And Spare Key, with its sparse sound and minimalist lyrics, completely reflects the yearning for someone to stay.
Overall this is as much a jazz album as it is rock or folk or bluegrass. Â The number of instrumental-only songs may put a few people off. Â But the amount of texture and complete mastery of so many sounds make this a recording that earns a lot of listens to catch all the subtlety of the arrangements and gorgeous sound. Â I expect to be as enamored of Road From Home in six months as I am today.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.