Todd Snider once advocated a life where you could “pack everything you own in 15 minutes and move on” as a way to collect the stories needed to be a good singer-songwriter. Â That philosophy has certainly given Todd plenty of good material. Â The duo of Seador Rose and Aaron Davis, in their persona as Screen Door Porch, seem to have acquired a similar portfolio, but more in an instrumental vein. Â Rose and Davis, hailing from North Carolina and Kentucky respectively, have divided much of their time between Jackson Hole and Austin. Â The songs on Screen Door Porch reflect a spirit of Americana that couldn’t have come through as powerfully without having been immersed in the differences of those locales.
The album starts off with Wrong the Right, showcasing a lo-fi sound that’s a hallmark of the whole record. Â Seador has some of that raw Erika Wennerstrom sound in her vocals, but combines it with an upbeat garage rock guitar resulting in one of those songs that really sticks with you. Â Firewater has a similar style, but with hand claps to build a good percussive background. Â Although using an acoustic guitar, From Sea also has a great percussion section and is a little more alt country.
As I mentioned earlier, there’s a lot going on in Screen Door Porch. Â There are a couple of themes that emerge, in addition to the lo-fi sound. Â One is a jazzy, Cajun, swing style that remind me of the Red Stick Ramblers. Â The best of the batch is Zemurray, that lays down the rhythmic gait of a hustler that surely means trouble. Â Similarly, Two More Than You covers that back room card game where you look around for the mark and realize it’s you. Â Blow Away and Cold Mountain Breath also have the jazzy thing going on, but at their core are more country blues arrangements. Â My favorite song on the album, though, is in a genre of it’s own. Â Ramblin’ Around is like a Marshall Tucker Band song written by Charlie Daniels. Â If you’re a fan of 70’s southern rock, listen to this one and tell me that’s not the case.
Although sometimes I whine about a record that skips around too much and never finds it’s center, Screen Door Porch avoids a lack of consistency even in the face of its wide range of styles. Â Like putting on your favorite old lucky hat on the way out the door for a night on the town, just plunk the figurative needle down anywhere on this disc and there’s a good time to be had.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.