Being a sought-after sideman has its advantages. One of those is that when you do your own album, you can pull in favors to fill out the band. Ben Balmer strikes gold in that vein on his latest record, Honky-Tonk Macbeth. The instrumental additions to Balmer’s solid singer-songwriter compositions fill the room with layers of sound you can tease new things out of every listen.
The opening track, Evil Eyes, sets that tone with a little bit of swing, a little blues, and maybe a hint of Cajun country lust when “her hips were swaying to the beat of my heart.” Purple With Pockets is a jazzy, upbeat love story with accents of rock guitar. Flower is a pretty little folk waltz with lilting lyrical delivery accentuated with female harmonies. WereBear Stare is a power pop number with some outstanding solo interplay between Cat Clemons on guitar and Eddie Dickerson on fiddle. The pair also duel it out on Road Goes Backwards.
The title track goes a little in the opposite direction with a heavy, dark interpretive summary of the Shakespeare masterpiece where it starts with “just words that sound pretty, then there’s mostly death.” The Runner, a contemporary murder ballad, starts with a light-hearted country beat before building to a larger-than-life Southern rock guitar solo finish. A big finish also features prominently in Married To the Road, an LA country rock take on the passion it takes to have a musician’s career.
Ben Balmer put a full complement of instrumental highlights on just about every song on the album, adding sonic flourishes that are downright addictive. Honky-Tonk Macbeth is one of those records that rewards multiple listens as you find new things to appreciate each time.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.