00-the_felice_brothers-life_in_the_dark-2016-erp.nfo
Artist | The Felice Brothers
Title | Life In The Dark
Genre | Folk/Rock Format | Album
Source | CDDA Time | 39:50
Label | Yep Roc Records Store | 2016
Catalog | YEP-2476 Rip | 2016
Bitrate | 245 kbps Size | 73.14 MB
Freq | 44.1 kHz Encoder | Lame 3.98.4
01. Aerosol Ball 3:50
02. Jack At The Asylum 3:39
03. Life In The Dark 3:55
04. Triumph '73 4:18
05. Plunder 3:41
06. Sally! 1:30
07. Diamond Bell 6:16
08. Dancing On The Wing 4:28
09. Sell The House 8:13
Hailing from the Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York, The Felice
Brothers blend folk, Americana, and revivalist roots rock into a uniquely
earthy sound. Brothers Ian, Simone, and James Felice grew up in the Hudson
River Valley, several miles away from the musical hamlet of Woodstock. Such
icons as Bob Dylan and the Band once found inspiration in the region, and
the Felice youngsters were driven by a similar muse, gathering every Sunday
afternoon for jam sessions and cookouts at their father's house. As their
skills improved, the brothers opted to leave the Catskills and relocate to
New York City.
As some sage once said, 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it', and the Felice
Brothers clearly seem to have taken that advice to heart. The group has
always owed a serious creative debt to The Band, and just as the 2014 album
"Favorite Waitress" was especially beholden to The Band's "Basement Tapes"
recordings with Bob Dylan, 2016's "Life In The Dark" sounds like a
thematically similar sequel. Some of the nine tunes on "Life In The Dark"
have a somber, 3 A.M. quality about them, especially "Sell The House" and
the title tune, but even at their most introspective, the performances
boast a spontaneous, rough-hewn approach that keeps the material from
getting too heavy.
And when the Felice Brothers swing into goofy, good-times numbers like
"Plunder" and "Sally", the effect suggests a bunch of urban campers having
an acoustic jam around the fire, with plenty of bourbon and smoke to go
around. "Life In The Dark" finds The Felice Brothers playing to their
strengths and doing what feels comfortable for them, but it doesn't seem as
if the Brothers are pushing themselves especially hard or taking any
chances. There's always been something special about the Felice Brothers'
touch as performers, but "Life In The Dark" makes it seem as if the magic
has faded a bit.
The group is no less skillful than before, but it's harder to hear anything
here that sounds especially inspired, and this doesn't clear out any new
ground for The Felice Brothers. Given how good the Felices are at what they
do, fans are still likely to enjoy "Life In The Dark" and its rambling take
on American roots music, but casual observers might find their minds
wandering by the time the album makes it into its final innings.
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