There are records - and then there are albums. What separates great artists from good ones is their ability to produce a full-length LP that can be absorbed from beginning to end. Place Mad Buffalo (http://www.madbuffalo.com) in that category.
While not stitched together with thematic unity, Mad Buffalo's "Fool Stand" nevertheless has the meat of a novel; every track burns with heart and substance. Lyrically and musically, "Fool Stand" satisfies the mind and soul. Like the best albums from Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen, "Fool Stand" bravely tackles current political issues while narrating the lives of the common man.
According to their website, "Glory Days" was written in the late '90s yet it can eeriely fit the context of a post-9/11 and Hurricane Katrina America. When vocalist/guitarist Randy Riviere sings, "We'll get our dealing done/Though the levee's blown to hell," images of corruption during the Katrina crisis come to mind. It's a strange coincidence but it unintentionally gives the tune more power.
In "Tangerines," Riviere speaks of a working man's plight. Although he's singing about the hard reality of making a living from the farm, it can be interpreted in a myriad ways. The picking of "Tangerines" can symbolize any low-paying industry. What makes "Tangerines" even more effective are the pummeling drums and the lush, cinematic guitars which sound like snakes sliding across the desert.
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At times, Riviere's gravelly voice is reminiscent of Michael Stipe of R.E.M., especially on the title track. At others, one can truly hear the influence of Young. In fact, the acoustic "What's True" is just as hauntingly beautiful as Young's "The Needle and the Damage Done."
The biggest surprise from "Fool Stand" is the closer, "Devil's Blood." An epic diatribe on the greed for oil money, Mad Buffalo unleashes the loudest drums since the '80s, pounding hard as piercing riffs help create a Wall of Sound as large as Texas. Remember U2's "Bullet the Blue Sky"? "Devil's Blood" has that same widescreen sonic scope.
Bang on the walls and tell your neighbors: One of the year's best LPs has arrived.
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