GET LOUD
Codie Prevost
Indie
7.5-out-of-10
I've always been a proponent of a musician hitting the listener with one of the best songs on a CD as the lead-in cut. You want to win over people off-the-bat, especially radio programmers and us fickle reviewers.Apparently Codie Prevost has the same vision, cause he comes out shooting on his latest release Get Loud.
The first song on the disk is the very solid Rolling Back To You, a likely radio hit in terms of the new rockified country.
Then you hit Honky Tonk Groupie. Turn down the windows, hit a country road, turn up the CD player and enjoy. This is a hot summer's day hit.
Actually Prevost has created a perfect compliment to a summer road trip. The disk for the most part just rocks out on catchy country riffs.
The title cut being another prototypical hit country hit which is infectious. A toe-tapping song.That is not to say Prevost, now a veteran of three CD releases, can't slow it down.
I'm Okay eases back on the gas and shifts down a gear, with a slower love song of lovers parted by the miles. It is a great change of pace from the driving country cuts which starts the CD, and is a definite emotional winner. The sentiment is touching, and the artist delivers it well.
In terms of modern country, Prevost does it well, although there are times he does blur the lines between his country and pop rock; in particular on the cut Standing Still.
Then Prevost ramps it up again with Cruising Song, which actually isn't as good a cruising song as the aforementioned ones, but it does take him back to his high gear where he is very comfortable.
As a bonus on the CD Prevost does give us his take on the classic Cotton Eye Joe, a nice extra track, with the added vocals of Katie Love Hess.
Overall a great country CD for the highway.
Check it out at www.myspace.com/codieprevostmusic
GET LOUD
Codie Prevost
Indie
7.5-out-of-10
SELF-TITLED
Scott Benson
Indie
9.5-out-of-10
When you put a CD on the player and the first song reminds of Enter the Haggis you should be darned excited.
So when Scott Benson's self-titled album started with Moshin The Floor, a Gaelic-inspired piece, mixing in a sprinkling of classical guitar, I was hooked, and ready for a great musical experience.
To Benson's credit he did not disappoint.
I suppose I could sum up this album in one word - Wow!, and just leave it at that, although the review wouldn't exactly fill a lot of space in the newspaper.
However, I would suggest if you love Celtic music with a bit of an experimental edge, just forget the rest of the review, get on your computer, go to www.scottbenson.ca and order this disk.
For those still reading, when I say edgy, Benson, a fiddler by trade, really does push the musical form at times. As an example Streets of Gold actually has a rap element with vocals from Philly 5. I am so not a rap fan that I rarely review it. Here though Benson makes it work.
The Darkness Befalls the Light and Roses and Reincarnations are more traditional, but Benson, who had his hand in writing both, shows he has a modernistic approach to crafting Celtic music.
Overall, the CD is just plain fantastic. Very highly recommended. Just buy it.
- CALVIN DANIELS
Past reviews are archived online at http://calmardan.blogspot.com/
SELF-TITLED
Scott Benson
Indie
9.5-out-of-10
- CALVIN DANIELS
