CD Odyssey Disc 1964: Sabaton

There is a special rule in the CD Odyssey that when I go see a band live in concert I can directly select their album, provided it is the album they are touring. That’s what’s happening here. So today it isn’t random, but don’t get used to it. We’ll be back to not knowing where our musical journey takes us in no time.

Also, if you like a bit of live concert review with your studio experience, I’ve provided exactly that following this review. Just keep scrollin’!

Disc 1964 is…Legends

Artist: Sabaton

Year of Release: 2025

What’s up with the Cover? Artwork that depicts the various characters you are going to encounter on the album. Looks like that rascal from the 12^th Dynasty Senusret III is getting centre stage on this one. Not my favourite song on the album but he does have a handsome visage and a resplendent headdress, so it’s an understandable choice.

Other notables you’ll see include Hannibal, Napoleon and Miyamoto Musashi. And others! Collect all your historical favourites here on…Legends!

How I Came To Know It: This was just me buying the latest release from Sabaton – a band I have been following for about seven years now. This is not remotely from the beginning, so I claim no street cred, but I have been making up for lost time.

How It Stacks Up: I have ten Sabaton albums. “Legends” is a good record, but I must reluctantly rank it at #9.

Ratings: 3 stars

Sabaton is one of those bands that I call “ACDC bands”. Not because they sound like ACDC (they don’t) but because like ACDC their songs all sound very similar to one another. If you like the sound, you tend to like their albums and if you don’t then you really need to go find a new interest, because this is their thing, and the lads aren’t for turning.

That thing is a mix of power metal, folk metal, and New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal (NWOTM – yes, it’s a term, IYKYK), a galloping beat, power chords and the bombastic vocals of frontman Joakim Broden.

Despite 25 years in the bombast game, Broden hasn’t lost a step and his vocals still cut through the fog of war (and on a Sabaton record there is a lot of that) and tells tales of various characters and battles through the course of human history.

I’ve mentioned this on previous reviews but it bears repeating: Sabaton are a band that sings about historical events, almost exclusively of the military variety. Much like their style of music, if this appeals to you, you will tend to view their records favourably and if this does not appeal to you then it is going to be a very long and fitful 45-55 minutes, indeed.

“Legends” is no exception to both the musical and thematic rules of the band, and because I land nicely at that intersection of bias, I had no complaints on that front. In fact, there are a few standouts on the album.

The first of these is “Templars”, a classic full-tilt Sabaton galloper about the Knights Templar that has a first-rate guitar riff hooking your ears. Broden is particularly good here, as the song lends itself to his range well and as usual, makes everything the height of DRAMA. This despite lyrics that are literal to the highest degree (another Sabaton standard). Don’t look for a lot of metaphor on a Sabaton record – they are here to share some history they found interesting, and they’re sticking to the facts, ma’am.

Another winner is “Crossing the Rubicon” about the fateful decision made by Julius Caesar to bring his legions back to Italy and contest for the leadership of Rome. Again, the heavy riffs and the unison singing on the chorus encourage singing along and create a surge of energy. Sabaton captures the dread import of decision like the crossing of the Rubicon and transports those momentous events across time and space so a modern audience can feel the urgency. It ain’t exactly time travel, but it’s a cousin.

My last of three favourites is “Lightning at the Gates” the story of Hannibal surprising the Roman legions by invading Italy across the alps. A bold maneuver that didn’t ultimately win him the war, but an inspiring bit of generalship all the same. Also, this song has one of the better melodic structures on the record, capturing the shifts in elevation, the determined march of an army and even a bit of optimistic whimsy in the guitar solo, as befits such an unorthodox bit of strategy.

So why only ranked 9th? Because apart from these three songs a lot of “Legends” is just not up to the same standard of earlier Sabaton records. When you do the same thing a lot, you walk a thin line to avoid becoming an imitation of yourself, and there are songs on “Legends” that feel a little like they are trying to squeeze water out of a stone. Also, while I don’t expect Shakespearean prose, songs like “I, Emperor” (Napoleon) and “Maid of Steel” (Joan of Arc) land awkwardly in both lyrics and phrasing. “I, Emperor” in particular is a plodder.

But even with a couple of clunkers this is still a Sabaton record, and all the ingredients you like (if you like this sort of thing) are there. While I didn’t get the full rush of some of their truly great records, I still had a good time and unlike most of the stuff they sing about, no one got hurt in the process.

Best tracks: Templars, Crossing the Rubicon, Lightning at the Gates

The Concert: October 8, 2026 at the PNE Forum, Vancouver, BC

This concert was originally scheduled for April but one of the members of the band had a medical issue and the show had to be delayed. I decided to stick it out, and with the companionship of my buddy Spence, I took it in with several thousand other screaming metalheads.

The Venue:

If you haven’t been to the PNE Forum, it is pretty great to see a show. It is essentially a mid-sized hockey rink built in the early thirties with a big central floor for moshing/fist-pumping types with good backs and bleachers on either side for those with backs that are a bit dodgier. No good for moshing, but still plenty of room to pump a fist or two. My companion and I, being of the dodgy-back persuasion, chose this option.

Wings of Steel

The first of two opening acts was Wings of Steel, a traditional heavy metal band that went full in for the eighties metal vibe. The line between homage and imitation in this genre can be admittedly fuzzy, so I’ll just say Wings of Steel did not offer anything new. The singer had good vocals and the songs were well structured, if a bit obvious. The guitar player played fast, but his solos felt disconnected from the song. It wasn’t to my taste, but I will say that on aggregate, these five guys had the BEST metal hair I have seen in many a decade.

Pop Evil

The second opener was Pop Evil, which was a very different kind of metal entirely. More thrashy/nu-metal crossover with a bit of nineties alternative mixed in there. These guys had good thump, but this isn’t a style that I personally find enjoyable, and I admit I started to get fidgety in anticipation of the main act.

Sabaton

At last, the band we’d been waiting for took the stage. I turned with breathless excitement to my friend and warned him that I might “fanboy out a bit”. This did happen.

First of all, Sabaton have a great stage setup. As you can see from the photo, it features a full-scale model of a First World War tank that the drummer perches on. There’s also a model piece of artillery to the side. With such initial promise, would this show feature explosions and smoke? Reader, it did, and plenty of it.

The band played tight and energetically and had a very knowledgeable and willing crowd eating out of their hands throughout the show. We sang along, we pumped our fists on demand and joyously participated as Sabaton rocked out.

The band has been doing this for a couple of decades now and their resulting mastery of the stage was on full display. They played off each other (often kidding each other with sight gags during songs and self-deprecating banter between them). Broden is a natural showman and brings levity and excitement to songs that are sometimes about heavy topics.

Unison singing is a big part of many Sabaton songs, and everyone brought their A game. There was even a trio of sexy (and talented) backup singers lending some higher range to the tunes.

In terms of setlist, I got almost everything I wanted, with two of my three favourites from “Legends” (see above) being played. Sadly, they also played, “I, Emperor” but even though I still didn’t like this song, it was markedly better live.

Other standouts for me included rousing renditions of “Bismarck”, “Fields of Verdun”, and “Night Witches”. The only one I really wanted to hear that didn’t make the setlist was “Winged Hussars” but hey, you can’t have everything.

Weirdly, there was no encore but that was OK with the show naturally wrapping up with a crescendo of bangers and a very theatrical series of bows (the band, Broden alone, the band with the backup singers, etc.) followed by the very welcome tossing of drumsticks, guitar picks and even the setlist sheet into the crowd.

I am always a little leery of stadium shows with “older” bands, but there were no concerns here with either sound quality or energy levels, and it was a rollicking, fist-pumping good time. Well worth the trip.

CD Odyssey Disc 1961: India Ramey

This next album is going to be a contender for my Top 10 albums of the year list. I won’t decide that until all the listens are in, but it’ll definitely be in the conversation.

Disc 1961 is…Villain Era

Artist: India Ramey

Year of Release: 2026

What’s up with the Cover? Old school cover, old school country and western, and India Ramey herself, looking as confident and self-possessed as a burgeoning talent should.

How I Came To Know It: I read a review on a music review site called Americana Highways and decided to give it a listen. Then I hit her up on Bandcamp. Every song I heard I liked more and more, and here we are.

How It Stacks Up: India Ramey has six albums but so far I only own “Villain Era”. I feel this is going to change soon but until it does, there is no stacking up to be had.

Ratings: 4 stars but almost 5

It seems like every year we lose another icon of the golden age of country music (miss you already, Dolly) and our western heroes have been gone even longer (RIP Tex Ritter, 1974; Marty Robbins, 1982). But readers, I’m here to tell you there is still cause for hope – and the name of that hope is India Ramey.

On “Villain Era” singer-songwriter Ramey has accomplished greatness in both genres – country and western – and found a way to take traditional structures in both genres and bring them into the 21^st century with panache, power and a dollop of dark humour.

Ramey’s liner notes indicate she wanted this record to sound like “Johnny Cash and Loretta Lynn had risen from the grave to score a Quentin Tarantino film”. A lofty goal with some name-dropping hubris but damn it if she doesn’t land it exactly as planned.

It starts with skillful songwriting, that matches up traditional country and western structures with clever and evocative lyrics.

The record’s opener, “We Ride at Dawn” is a classic dark western. In under three and a half minutes Ramey lays out a tale of rape, murder and revenge as a group of women survivors ride out to exact frontier justice on the gang that destroyed their community and left them for dead. It’s dark and powerful, with haunting pedal steel and a galloping beat that matches the horses of the avenging angels that tell the tale. It’s tough and tragic and resonates with the thunder of horse’s hooves and the anticipation of the gun smoke to come. As openers go, you can’t do better.

As I noted, Ramey does both western and country, and it isn’t long until we get a country classic in “Scattered and Smothered” (the title of which is an homage to her old cover band of the same name). The darkness of “We Ride at Dawn” is replaced with a whimsical mid-tempo gallop. The entirety of this record features more clever turns of phrase than you can shake a six-gun at, but “Scattered and Smothered” may be my favourite of all, with an opening stanza of:

“Well it's 2 a.m. and I'm waffling
I've been somewhere I ain't supposed to been
And I'm looking like Alice Cooper
In a little black dress
Well I'm hot mess, I must confess
Ever since he brought up taking next steps
And my drunk ass needs
Some hash browns and scrambled eggs”

Ramey sings it all with a playful southern drawl and a gift for phrasing that is reminiscent of early Dolly Parton, minus the sweetness.

Ramey can also belt it out, as she does on “Six Feet Under” where she shows big lungs, peeling out rich notes that fill out every corner of the room.

“Six Feet Under” is one of many songs that feature imagery of graves and death. This is Gothic country at its best since Johnny Cash rumbled on about a long black veil. Other fine examples on “Villain Era” include “Dead to Me” and “Ghost Town”. The latter is a song that bemoans the loss of the classic country sound in favour of the polished pop version that now sadly dominates Nashville.

Ramey is also funny where the situation calls for it – notably on “Cult Money” about the snake oil salesmanship of false religion. Something that is made possible – as Ramey notes in the refrain – because “people’ll pay a whole lotta money/to stay outta hell.”

The musicianship on “Villain Era” is also top notch, with Ramey assembling a group of players that are up to the task of songs that require heavily on pinpoint timing and just the right amount of jump. I was pleased to note the appearance of Chris Masterson and Eleanor Whitmore, bringing back fond memories of their work as country duo, The Mastersons.

The worst thing about “Villain Era” was finding out it was Ramey’s sixth record, meaning I have been living for years without her music, and didn’t have to. Consider that sad era at an end and sign me up for the Cult of Ramey. I won’t pay any money to stay outta hell, but I’ll happily spend for records like “Villain Era”.

Best tracks: We Ride at Dawn, Scattered and Smothered, Six Feet Under, Nobody’s Coming, Cult Money, Ghost Town

CD Odyssey Disc 1958: Katy Kirby

Blue Raspberry is one of my favourite “drink” flavours but I always feel that raspberry gets short-changed on the use of red, which is reserved for strawberry (light red) and cherry (dark red). This record has very little to do with drink flavours, but I just had to get that off my chest.

Disc 1958 is…Blue Raspberry

Artist: Katy Kirby

Year of Release: 2024

What’s up with the Cover? Katy (assuming the brunette is Katy) and another person engage in some sort of embrace. Maybe they’re wrestling, maybe Katy is rescuing them from drowning or maybe it is a more amorous adventure. Whether it is sport, a rescue or sex, based on the sun-dappled water it looks like the weather is cooperating. Way easier to do all those things when the waves aren’t too big.

How I Came To Know It: I was already a fan of Kirby having encountered her through her 2021 debut, “Cool Dry Place” (reviewed back at Disc 1726). When I saw she had a new album out a couple of years ago I checked it out and liked what I heard.

How It Stacks Up: Kirby only has two full length records, and if you’re following along you’ll know that I have both of them. Of the two I enjoyed “Blue Raspberry” slightly more, so it is…#1.

Ratings: 4 stars

Katy Kirby has a languid style to her brand of indie pop that leaves you feeling relaxed and ready to see the world in a fresh and unhurried way. This is a record to both relax you musically, while throwing in just enough unexpected imagery that your mind is active and searching for the next line. Also, it’s very sexy.

Kirby’s high sweet vocals shows a lot of range in songs that are all sweet and introspective, but surprisingly variable in how they approach a melody. This record keeps your groove engaged throughout,

The opening track, “Redemption Arc” is even a bit off-brand, sung in her lower register, with a lurching minor key lilt that had me favourably comparing the approach to “Bachelor No. 2” era Aimee Mann. Unlike early Mann, Kirby is a bit more romantic than fatalist, and “Redemption Arc” is an apology song that is more focused on the comfort of making up than the apology itself. You get the sense that all is forgiven without any words spoken, but the words are welcomed all the same.

The record launches into Kirby’s more familiar high head voice on “Cubic Zirconia” which also oozes with a relaxed romanticism that permeates the record. Not content to rely on the record’s catchiest melody and a delightful birdsong phrasing, Kirby throws in some top-tier imagery. Best stanza:

“Face framed by hoodie like an oyster in a shell
And your eyes are rolling at me as a pair of angry pearls
You're the prettiest mermaid in the souvenir shop
But if you're coming home this late
You know you'd better be drunk”

Not something typically wished for, but there is a strong current of sexy that flows through this record that makes even a drunken homecoming feel like a fairy tale. Readers please note: this outcome is rarely the case and only works for the absolutely prettiest mermaids. If you're a merman, just forget about it entirely. Take off your shoes quietly in the hall and sleep on the couch.

But I digress.

“Wait Listen” has a song construction that is reminiscent of Leonard Cohen, both in terms of how the song builds the story as well as the mix of the tender and the bawdy poetry of a memorable hook up.

That ribbon of lyrical sexuality twists like a ribbon through the entirety of “Blue Raspberry” taking a record that could fall into its own introspection and instead making each song a sensual confession.

Kirby re-examines imagery used in earlier songs throughout the record, trying concepts out from different angles like the facets of the fake diamonds she references early on. She will return to the image of the cubic zirconia on “Salt Crystal” along with pearls (now in the mouth not the eyes), and the erotic nature of a well-placed bite (earlier featured in the amorous adventures of “Wait Listen”). Then, as your mind skips along with the sweetness of the melody, Kirby pulls it all together in a golden hour moment with:

“The rhinestones on your baseball cap reminding me of when
The salt left crystal on the sunset of your sunburned skin”

The best part of it all is that with its slow and relaxed style, this clever construction of image upon image slips into your mind slowly, like a cool summer breeze through an open window – invisible but alive on your skin.

Some albums hit you hard and early, but “Blue Raspberry” is a slow build that steals inside of you with a quiet beauty. It might take a few listens to catch everything that’s going on, but it’s worth the effort.

Best tracks: Redemption Arc, Cubic Zirconia, Wait Listen, Salt Crystal

CD Odyssey Disc 1957: The Hives

When you’re a kid you might say “let’s pretend” to get your playmates to buy in to some imagined world. As a teenager it morphs to “let’s say” and as adults we try to pull off the sophistry of “I think we can all agree” without anyone noticing.

Here on the CD Odyssey we don’t do any of that. It’s just one person’s musical observations (mine) and you can agree as much or as little as you like.

Disc 1957 is…The Hives Forever Forever the Hives

Artist: The Hives

Year of Release: 2025

What’s up with the Cover? The Hives dressed up as a quintette of kings (which would be a good name for a band).

When I was younger I belonged to a medieval re-enactment group. I was a 15^th century pirate with a penchant for purple, which some of the more ardent re-creationists felt was an affront to the king.

It was good fun and I was mostly left unaccosted unless I crossed too close in front of the throne (occupied or not) and made it even more of a thing.

If the Hives tried to cosplay these particular outfits there would definitely be some accosting. Of the fun kind, though. Less fun if they were actually trying to pull this off in the actual 15^th century, where it would have led to five very serious and immediate beheadings.

How I Came To Know It: I read a review and overcame that common bias we experience when we know a band has been around for a while and assume that if we were going to like them it would’ve happened by now. Instead I gave it a go and…here we are.

How It Stacks Up: The Hives have a bunch of records but so far this is my only one, so it can’t stack up.

Ratings: 3 stars

Sometimes when you see a bunch of soccer hooligans marching toward a stadium and chanting I think to myself “what do these guys listen to pre-game to get themselves into a good lather?” “The Hives Forever Forever the Hives” feels like a strong contender. More on this later.

“The Hives Forever, etc.” are what I would call “straight rock and roll, no chaser”. This is the pure stuff. Not particularly creative, nor innovative but just good old fashioned guitar riffs and up-tempo bangers. Good for driving fast, toasting your buddies, or maybe fisticuffs. I like the first two of those things (n.b. not at the same time) and that generally supportive but not all-in approach is how I’d characterize my reaction to this record.

The Hives have a throwback British punk scene sound, with beats that lean forward and guitar chords that crash with frenetic energy. I was surprised to learn they are actually from Sweden. Not exactly a Stefan Edberg “talented but genteel” vibe here.

Where they are Edberg-like is in the precision of their playing, which is top notch. These guys are tight in a way most bands dream about. It is all very fast and furious, but their skills give these songs a polish that most pop songs would envy.

The result is a lot of radio bangers that aren’t exceptionally creative but are a lot of fun. Not a complicated road course here, but they lean tight and fast into what corners there are. As for the riffs, at their best they are timeless perfection and at their worst they are “pretty sure I’ve heard this one before – but still like it”.

In terms of the lyrics, I found myself returning to the aforenoted hooligans (I told you we’d return). I would say that the Hives mostly sing about what can best be characterized as mindless rebellion; middle finger raised to the world (or two fingers in England) combined with recurring announcements exhorting you to party. I love to party, but the parties depicted here feel like the kind that start with friendly toasts and end with someone getting head-butted over something they said about Arsenal.

The opening lines of “Enough is Enough” are:

“Everyone's a little f**kin' bitch
And I am getting sick and tired of it
Went to the doctor 'cause I was sick
Sick of everybody's bulls**t”

And if that doesn’t sufficiently paint a picture, try the chorus from “Paint a Picture”:

“Oh, let me paint a picture
I ain't no f**king slob
Oh, let me paint a picture
More like a f**king god to you”

The chorus from “Paint a Picture” is delivered in unison barroom style that was tailor-made to be a soccer chant someday, if it isn’t already. It’s fun to sing along but it doesn’t exactly provide compelling metaphors or convincing oratory. Then again, it isn’t supposed to. It is supposed be mindless fun, and “The Hives Forever, etc…” is exactly that. Not in any way thought-provoking but a high-energy good time whether driving fast, partying hard, or just getting energized – ideally with no one getting punched.

Best tracks: Enough is Enough, Bad Call, Paint a Picture, Path of Most Resistance

CD Odyssey Disc 1954: The Watson Twins

Welcome back to the CD Odyssey where today we take a second dig into recently released Americana.

Disc 1954 is…Holler

Artist: The Watson Twins

Year of Release: 2023

What’s up with the Cover? Sisters Chandra and Leigh (aka the Watson Twins) strike a pose in front of a brick wall. Or possibly this is Leigh and Chandra. I can’t tell. They’re twins.

How I Came To Know It: I learned about the Watson Twins through their collaboration with Jenny Lewis on her debut album Rabbit Fur Coat in 2006 (which I’ve owned for almost twenty years but surprisingly have not rolled to review).

That record got me heavily into Jenny Lewis (and from there, Rilo Kiley) but I never paid the Watson Twins much mind. I bought one of their records in 2010 but it wasn’t until a few years back that I explored their discography in earnest.

That occurred because the local record store had a bunch of their records used and reasonably priced, and so I decided to see how they’d fared over all those years. Turns out there were a couple more good enough to buy, and “Holler” was one of ‘em.

How It Stacks Up: The Watson Twins have released six full length LPs, but I only have three. Of those three, I put “Holler” in at third (or last, if you are being pessimistic).

Ratings: 2 stars

There’s something about twins singing harmony that always sounds special, and the Watson Twins are no exception. While this gives this record a leg up overall the potential was never fully realized in the way I’d hoped.

With that ominous lede and those two stars hanging tarnished in the “ratings” category, you might be eagerly anticipating a whole lot of nasty in this review. If so, you’ll be disappointed. Overall, I enjoyed “Holler” which is a mainstream run at indie country/Americana performed with talent and care.

The vocals on the record have the aforementioned “twin” advantage, and both Watsons together have a rich tone and a talent for phrasing. There is very little solo singing on the record, and even where one sister is leading, there is heavy support. This is a team effort. I could’ve used a little more variation to the way they approached each song vocally, but it is a minor quibble.

They sound best on “Hundred Miles”, where the ladies benefit from a lilting melody, and yet another depiction of the dream of Nashville, deflected. In this case 100 miles in the wrong direction to a town called Crossville. I looked it up and sure enough, Crossville TN is a place – about 12,000 people strong. Likely a fine enough town, but less so if you are dreaming of the bright lights of Nashville like the song’s narrator.

In any event, the song showcases the Watson Twins’ vocals, which do not feature big range or power, but are surprisingly sweet for such a sad song.

“Hundred Miles” is a good song, but it also illustrates that for much of the record I found the vocals float a bit too much mid-range, in songs with workmanlike compositions that just don’t reach in and grab you like art should. The stereo hum of the two-part harmonies are soothing at first, but over the course of the record they left me wanting more, either in terms of a third voice, more solo work, or maybe just songs with more movement in their structure.

But let’s be positive again. I also liked “The Palace” which is a barroom anthem about the local watering hole. Lyrics like:

“Another night at The Palace
Pour me a double in the chalice
If you won't be my king, I'll wear the crown
This watering hole my home
This barstool is my throne
If we ain't making up, I'll throw 'em down”

Feel heavily inspired by the more famous “Queen of the Silver Dollar” of Dr. Hook or Emmylou Harris (depending on your preferred version) which begins with a similar:

“She's the queen of the Silver Dollar
And she rules this smoky kingdom
And her sceptre is a wineglass
And a barstool is her throne”

I like how “The Palace” puts an interesting twist on what is essentially the same scene, but from the queen’s perspective, not the viewers. Through her narrative we learn she’s out on the town because she’s angry with her no-good cheat of a boyfriend. At the Silver Dollar, the jesters flock around their queen and fight to win her favour. At the Palace, you know that any success they achieve is as much an expression of her vengeance as her interest.

“The Palace” and “Hundred Miles” are my two favourites, one for the storyline and one for the melody. There are other good tunes, including the title track, which is clearly intended to be an opening banger, but they didn’t cut quite so deep.

Not helping is very flat production across the record, which makes things sound distant and fuzzy on songs that would benefit from a bit more separation. There is a distinct alt-rock sound thrown into the arrangements but the songs are country tunes down in their bones, and the two vibes don’t always gel as intended.

There’s nothing on “Holler” that straight up irritated me, but there were just too few moments where I wanted to..er…holler. For this reason, I’m going to bid this record a fond farewell from my collection and wish it well in finding a better match than with me.

Best tracks: The Palace, Hundred Miles

CD Odyssey Disc 1953: The Brothers Comatose

A friend remarked to me last night that I tend to review a lot of obscure albums. That may be true, but I’ve got nothing against mainstream artists and have many in my collection. On the other hand, my tastes are wide and varied, and the fickle dice I roll to determine what I’ll explore next care not for the considerations of fame nor notoriety.

Today, the dice gods have decided to stick with the obscure.

Disc 1953 is…Turning Up the Ground

Artist: The Brothers Comatose

Year of Release: 2022

What’s up with the Cover? It’s a funky graphic that – like the album title – explores two kinds of ground, one musical and one agricultural.

I like some of the specific choices depicted here. Snail shell or moth? Banjo case full of mushrooms or guitar case full of flowers?

Best of all, you can choose between a shovel with a vine wrapped around it or a shovel with a snake wrapped around it? On first blush, I think vine-over-snake is the obvious and safer bet, but if you’re shoveling snow out of a driveway, you’re really going to need the flat blade on that snake shovel. Just, you know, wear thick gloves.

How I Came To Know It: Another album I found through an album review.

How It Stacks Up: I went on to explore the Brothers Comatose’s discography (they have seven albums) but so far this is the only one that’s landed in my collection, so it can’t stack up.

Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4

After a few days with prog rock band Moon Tooth my ear was ready for something free and easy, and the Dice Gods obliged with the folk/bluegrass stylings of the Brothers Comatose.

If you are expecting creative time signatures and outré chord progressions I would refer you back to Moon Tooth (or better still, just listen to Rush or Tool) but if you enjoy songs you can slap your knee to and harmonies that you can sing along to in confidence after the first couple of verses, this is the band for you.

For some, this simple approach to music might be misinterpreted as meaning the band isn’t good, but nothing could be farther from the truth. The simpler the arrangements to a song, the more important it is the band plays with coordinated skill. That alchemy of quiet individual confidence, and a constant ear to where your bandmates are sitting in the pocket, is what separates good bands from mediocre ones.

On this front, the Brothers Comatose have their artistry down pat. Their songs have a softness to them that relies heavily on casting their spell of relaxation on the listener. Playing light and a bit slow is often much harder than just forcing in as many flourishes as can be squeezed between notes.

That isn’t to say the Brothers Comatose just play by the numbers. “Turning Up the Ground” has just the right amount of small touches of fiddle, mandolin and guitar in space. These aren’t there for technical excellence, but more like a light ripple of wind across tall grass – almost unnoticed but critical to drawing you closer to the natural movement of the whole.

Many of the songs on “Turning Up the Ground” have a transitional feel to them, with explorations of shifting from one thing to another. Sometimes choosing your art over a day job (“Working for Somebody Else”) sometimes the end of a relationship (“That Shit Ain’t Funny”), or maybe just a plea for connection in a time of uncertainty (“When It All Falls Apart”). These songs tend to bring out the best in the band, creative tension being one of the keys to great songwriting.

The tracks are well-ordered, and the best song comes midway with the break-up tune, “That Shit Ain’t Funny”. The song relies heavily on the restless rise and fall of the melody, and while a lot of the chorus climbs through the scale the first thing you hear is a low guitar walk down. This lets the listen know you’re starting from somewhere low, also evidenced by the song’s first line, “I can see through you like paper”. Yeah – things ain’t going well here…

The song also has some first-rate decisions in the arrangement category, starting sparsely with just guitar strum and then slowly building as we add in each member of the band, culminating in a lovely call-and-answer between fiddle and guitar at the bridge. The whole effect captures that sense of determination when you’re at the “pack the car” stage of a break-up, both resolute and also filled with regret.

On my first couple of listens I told myself that this record was nothing special, but on repeat listens its soft and gentle beauty sunk into my bones. My only complaint is that I had intended to just have a “one and done” relationship with this band, and now I realize I’m going to have to explore their entire discography. If the other records are as good as this, I’ll be well-contented, which is exactly the headspace “Turning Up the Ground” will put you in if you give it a chance.

Best tracks: Working for Somebody Else, Soft and Blue, That Shit Ain’t Funny, When it All Falls Apart

CD Odyssey Disc 1949: M(h)aol

A rare Friday review resulting from my being at home today waiting for some building infrastructure to be installed. Rather than feeling trapped, I’m going to take the opportunity to get some tasks done around the house that I’ve been putting off.

Before that, though, let’s procrastinate with a music review! The sixth of the last eight of an album released in 2025, so that trend continues…

Disc 1949 is…Something Soft

Artist: M(h)aol

Year of Release: 2025

What’s up with the Cover? Kitty on a balcony! I give this cover an enthusiastic 5 out of 5, as any day where you spot a kitty on a balcony is a good day.

Also, cats are my #1 favourite thing in the “something soft” category.

How I Came To Know It: The boring way. I read a review of this album somewhere (I think Paste Magazine) and decided to check them out.

How It Stacks Up: I have two M(h)aol albums. “Something Soft” comes in at #2, making it good for the silver medal or last, depending on what kind of day you are having. I hope it is the first kind.

Ratings: 3 stars

“Loud noises!” yells weatherman Brick Tamland in a scene from Anchorman, not sure what is happening but overcome by all the cacophony. The sexist Channel 4 Newsroom would have a similarly tough time with the feminist stylings of Irish post-punk band M(h)aol, who deploy a broad swathe of jarring bangs and thumps while delivering their message.

It’s creative, thoughtful music that is sneaky smart in the way it pulls together noise and fury in a way that seems random when the wave first hits you, but that you quickly realize is done with clear intent. The better question for me wasn’t “is it good?” - it is - but rather, “did I enjoy it?”

Eventually, yes.

To tuck in a bit on this mixed reaction, it’s important to acknowledge my bias for some chord progressions and resolution in my music. I like my death metal melodic, not technical. And when it comes to post-punk, the bias spills in there as well.

So my first reaction was, admittedly, to the loud noises, and M(h)aol find and deploy a lot of them. The record is very heavy on syncopation, with drum and bass forward in the mix, crashing about like an unbolted piston in an engine room bouncing off the walls – unpredictable and dangerous. Even the guitars are mostly short repeating chords designed to add more thump.

Constance Keane takes over singing duties from departed band member Roisin Nic Ghearailt, delivering most songs in a low spoken-word rhythmic monotone. It is similar to Wet Leg but with less playfulness and more dread. In that style phrasing and timing are critical elements, and Keane (who is also the band’s drummer) hits her spots nicely.

Most of the songs fail to develop beyond their initial theme. They often get louder and more crowded with sounds but it is mostly about establishing a single musical theme, encircling that theme like a python, and squeezing it with ever-increasing intensity.

There was the ever-present threat of boredom from my melodically-biased aesthetic, but the band never lets the song go on long enough for me to get fidgety. Most are over in under three minutes.

The lyrics tag up with the musical approach, often being a phrase or two repeated over and over. Themes tend to be dark: abandonment, fear of partner violence, the death of a pet (n.b. it is a dog, despite the record’s cover, which I found both misleading and disappointing).

There is a lot of ‘tells’ here that point me to not liking this record. No melodic resolution? No narrative in the lyrics? Coming off a record full of folk and Celtic folk I was primed and ready to be unhappy.

Thing is, M(h)aol is just too good at what they do. The more I listened, the more I caught the magic of what they were doing.

Musically, the noise has focus and intent, and it drives deep in the marrow the more you listen. There are layers to it (better heard on headphones FYI) that pull you into an almost trance-like state. And because the songs are short, I could just appreciate the moment rather than getting caught up in what came next.

Despite limited lyrical content, the phrases M(h)aol choose land with maximum impact. For the dead dog, a simple and insistent repeat of “you should be here”. A gut punch for any loss of a loved one, which often rolls over and over in your mind as you grieve, just like the song.

On IBS, Keane sings/speaks, “Roll over/3 A.M. You’re Still Here/And I Ask Myself “Will You Hurt Me?” We don’t know the kind of hurt involved – physical, emotional, or just someone getting up and leaving before the dawn. We do know the universal anxiety and vulnerability of opening up to someone and wondering what’s next. And just like anxiety wonders such things over and over in a loop, so does the song.

When you do something well, you can overcome a lot. “Something Soft” was not in my musical wheelhouse. It wasn’t even on the ships I tend to sail. Rather, it was more of a ship passing by, purposefully pounding its way through the chop; a bit ungainly for my tastes, but you have to admire the sturdiness of the hull and the skill of the captain.

Best tracks: Pursuit, You Are Temporary But the Internet is Forever, IBS, 1-800-Call-Me-Back

CD Odyssey Disc 1948: Carpenter, Fowlis, and Polwart

Welcome back to the Odyssey, where today we celebrate my favourite kind of supergroup – the obscure supergroup! Can you be obscure and still be a supergroup? Well, here on the CD Odyssey we say emphatically – yes!

In other news this is the fifth album of the last seven to be released in 2025, so if the thread you’re looking for is a common one – there you have it.

Disc 1948 is…Looking for the Thread

Artist: Mary Chapin Carpenter, Julie Fowlis, Karine Polwart

Year of Release: 2025

What’s up with the Cover? At first I thought this cover was a bunch of stars, but Sheila tells me these are birds, and I am inclined to agree.

How I Came To Know It: I am Mary Chapin Carpenter fan and I always give any new album from her a chance. This doesn’t always land like it used to, and I have only bought four of her last 11 records.

Enter, “Looking for the Thread” into this uncertain atmosphere, with a couple of additional musicians sharing the bill just to complicate matters further. How will it all pan out? Read on!

How It Stacks Up: I have nine Mary Chapin Carpenter albums, but this is a Carpenter/Fowlis/Polwart album. I’ve only got one of those, so it can’t stack up.

Ratings: 4 stars

I don’t know what inspired Mary Chapin Carpenter to share two thirds of her record with a couple of Scottish folk singers, but it breathes new life into her work almost forty years removed from her first record and brought two other talented singer-songwriters to my attention in the process.

Listening to Carpenter add Scots Gaelic inspiration to her work felt like a full circle moment for me. My first love of folk music came in the late eighties through the experience of Irish and Scottish folk artists. I ate up everything Clannad and Capercaillie could put out back then, as I weaned myself (temporarily as it turned out) from my heavy metal youth.

Carpenter was an early influence on me to expand my horizons westward, showing me that Americana folk music was equally compelling and worth my time and attention. All these years later, Carpenter returns me to my first love and infuses a new sound and approach into her own music in the process. Suffice it to say I was primed to like this record.

Things begin with Julie Fowlis putting new music to the traditional folk song, “Gradh Geal Mo Chridhe”. Stylistically, this song was an immediate trip down memory lane, with Fowlis’s voice pealing out into the night air (n.b. I listened during the day but the song has a “hear it at night” kind of vibe).

The low hum in the production, and the slow adding of instruments in the arrangement gives the song a building majesty that was everything I loved about Scottish music back in the day. It was like a lost lover returned from across the sea to serenade me. The whole tune is in Gaelic but you don’t need to understand the lyrics word for word for Fowlis to make you feel the feels. This song has romance in its bones.

The tune features a very resonant sounding fiddle, which I was to learn (via liner notes and a Youtube video) is Caomhin O’Raghallaigh playing an instrument called the ‘hardanger d’amore’. This is basically a big fiddle with some extra stings under the bridge that pick up the vibrations above and add extra oomph. I’d never heard of this thing before, but I was instantly enthralled with its haunting resonance.

After Fowlis lands a big moment in the record's opening notes, Mary Chapin Carpenter then joins the fray. “A Heart That Never Closes” features a list of domestic imagery all held together by the most powerful glue society ever concocted: the open heart. Fowlis (I think) comes in late with some well-placed whistle (the instrument, not the pursed lips) to add gravitas and colour in the edges.

Rounding out the record’s exceptional opening is Karine Polwart’s “Rebecca”, a song that takes on a bit of darkness, as the titular character is invited by her lover thusly:

“Trace your fingers along the scars
Where the cold steel tried to cut me down
They will never truly heal.”

The song never explains where these wounds came from, or what was sacrificed or won in the gaining of them. Maybe an old fighter home from the wars, maybe the result of a duel preserving Rebecca’s honour. It’s never said, but you can tell from the way Polwart’s light but deliberate Scottish lilt delivers them, it is one hell of a story.

The vocals of Fowlis, Polwart and Carpenter are all equally rich, each in its own way. Fowlis pure and high, Carpenter’s throaty low notes and Polwart with the sharpest edge – both vocally and in subject matter.

While the rest of the record never hits the same 1-2-3 punch of the opener, there is still plenty to recommend. A late favourite is Carpenter’s “Satellite” which is about some sort of space exploration device launched in ‘78. My poorly informed research suggests it could be the Pioneer Venus Multiprobe, the International Cometary Explorer, or some made up mission in the future where ’78 is short for 2078. My bet is on the International Cometary Explorer, but that’s not what’s important.

What is important is that deep space scientific probes aren’t the sort of thing that populate your average folk song. Not only does Carpenter sell you on the adventure, by the end she has you rooting hard for the damn thing like it’s a person.

Each of these artists has had a long career, and each clearly inspires the other two to make great music. The result is a fine bit of collaboration that not only has me happily returning to Mary Chapin Carpenter but also discovering two artists that it is my great shame to not have known sooner. I’m excited to explore further now that I’ve found the thread.

Best tracks: Gradh Geal Mo Chridhe, A Heart That Never Closes, Rebecca, Hold Everything, Satellite, Buidheann Mo Chridhe Clann Ualraig

CD Odyssey Disc 1947: The Head and the Heart

I usually review an album on Saturday but I’m getting an early start on this one so that I can remove it from my car, my MP3 player, and my life.

Disc 1947 is…Aperture

Artist: The Head and the Heart

Year of Release: 2025

What’s up with the Cover? Indistinct silhouettes in the fading light. This cover has very little to recommend it, which is not unlike my experience with this record.

How I Came To Know It: I first heard Head and the Heart in 2010 when they released their eponymous debut. I liked that record quite a bit, and over the years it’s afterglow has caused me to give their new releases a chance. Sometimes I like them, more often I don’t. I gave “Aperture” half a listen to and figured was good enough to buy.

How It Stacks Up: The Head and the Heart have six studio albums and I own three of them. Of those three, “Aperture” comes in at #3.

Ratings: 2 stars

“Aperture” is a perfectly pleasant 45 minutes of your life, as long as you don’t expect too much and don’t listen too hard. Since that’s not at all how I approach music, my experience was somewhere south of pleasant.

It’s my own fault. I explore a lot of new music in a year, and while an album gets my full and undivided attention when I review it, my first listen can sometimes find me distracted, with the music a bit in the background, as I wait for it to grab my attention. “Aperture” never grabbed my attention, but it felt consistently OK, and I figured it would grow on me.

Instead, this record revealed itself to be a surface beauty only. That girl at the bar that at a glance you want to talk to until you, you know, actually talk to her.

The record is easy early, with vocals that have a lovely tone that is smooth and rich, with production to match. However, it is all a bit too produced – too much smooth and not enough rich. The effect feels a bit “singing competition” for me, losing much of the edge of their 2010 release. They are without one of the cofounders these days (Josiah Johnson). This could be part of the challenge, but having only dabbled off and on with the Head and the Heart over the years, I don’t feel sufficiently informed to say.

Beyond this, there were two things that set me off in the wrong direction: the structure of the songs and the lyrics. Those are two pretty big things, and no amount of smooth production or silky vocals was going to fix it.

First, the song structures, which have lost the band’s indie creativity and just feel like any generic song you’re likely to hear on pop radio. It took me to a bad headspace of being out later in the evening at a music festival, where some “next new thing” band has drunken concert goers chanting along to deliberately constructed “singalong” chorus moments. And not the good “Frank Turner” singalong that draws you out with poetic inspiration, but more the manipulative kind based on a catchy rhythm and little else.

I like festivals, but that moment where the experience switches from being about the music and becomes about being there and taking photos of yourself to prove it (usually around 7-8 p.m.) is my least favourite window. It just feels like the soul of the show empties out, and realizing my feet hurt and, unable to face another Sunday evening port-a-potty, I turn and go. Behind me I imagine some stock anthem pop to keep the masses entertained and drinking, but before the headliner takes the stage. That’s this record.

The lyrics were my other challenge, with song after song being a cobbling together of cliché imagery and generalities. Probably lots of music I like has this problem, but all I can say is here is where I noticed it. “Nothing left to lose”, “someone’s gonna break your heart again/that’s just proof that you’re alive”, “I’m gonna tell you straight from the heart” and on it goes.

Not the only place you’ll encounter these shortcuts but combined with very “by the book” music you get the impression of a band taking exactly zero artistic chances. By the time the final song (“Aperture”) sang out these fateful lines:

“You get tired of hearing “it is what it is”
You’ll never rise above it”

I was thinking my own cliché in response – ‘I couldn’t agree more’.

There are bright spots here and there. The songs may be unimaginative but they’re not jarring or outright terrible. “Cop Car” is a little gem of a tune about getting arrested that captures some of the band’s early magic.

But there aren’t enough of these moments and mostly I was bored, and ready to leave early. And so here’s a Friday evening review where I’m doing just that.

Best tracks: Beg Steal or Borrow, Cop Car

CD Odyssey Disc 1945: Ketch Secor

This is the third review in the last four that came out in 2025. While I select albums randomly every time, it does show I bought plenty of music in 2025. And every other year.

Disc 1945 is…Story the Crow Told Me

Artist: Ketch Secor

Year of Release: 2025

What’s up with the Cover? Ketch Secor channels the Fonz.

How I Came To Know It: I’ve been a fan of Old Crow Medicine Show for a long time, and Secor is the singer and key songwriter for that band, so when he released a solo record, I figured it was worth a listen.

How It Stacks Up: This is my only solo record by Secor, so it can’t stack up.

Ratings: 4 stars

Ketch Secor’s “Story the Crow Told Me” is part love letter to all the music that influenced him, and part thank you to everyone who helped him along the way. It’s a grateful and gracious record that tickles your ears and warms your heart.

Secor has plenty of material to draw on for such a retrospective, having navigated the highways of the world for 25 years as part of Old Crow Medicine Show. In lesser hands such a journey could feel self-indulgent, but this record is authentic and heartfelt throughout.

From the personal, Secor digs deep into his early experiences, busking his way across Canada and America, playing various holes in the wall (there is even a song called “Holes in the Wall” that honours them by name).

The songs have all the jump and energy that you’d expect on a full-blown OCMS album, supported by his OCMS band mates in several places, as well as additional star power of Molly Tuttle on harmony and even an appearance by the legendary Marty Stuart. The energy of the record is infectious, with hand-claps and sing-a-long choruses that make you feel like you’re part of the band, or at least in the front row of the show.

There isn’t anything particularly innovative on this record – it is the mélange of sounds typical of OCMS, mixing bluegrass, Americana, and country, but what it lacks in creativity it makes up for with veteran songwriting that delivers banger after banger.

Secor has assembled a band that is as tight and talented as they come, mostly settling down in the front of the pocket bluegrass style. It creates a jump and energy that makes it impossible to sit still. Matching the subject matter of the songs, the music is celebratory and lively.

Secor’s vocals are sneaky good. These songs don’t require a huge vocal range but they do call for elite timing and phrasing, and Secor delivers throughout. The effect is one of an expert storyteller, knowing how to lean in or out, complete with micropauses to emphasize punchlines and emotional notes when the moment demands. He’s so smooth at this that you’re liable to not notice, but it is worth the extra focus to appreciate his uncanny sense of timing.

In addition to revisiting his own personal journey through music, the record is also replete with music history. If you’re a fan of the history of Americana, folk and country music, there are Easter Eggs aplenty here. On “On the Wall” Secor celebrates getting your picture up on the wall alongside Hank Williams and Little Jimmy Dickens. The song is a mix of pride and humility as Secor reflects on the mark he too has made on music.

The album’s last song, “What Nashville Was” is the only negative moment on the record, as Secor laments the decline of Nashville’s music scene from a centre of creative excellence to the empty calories of new country that emerged in the nineties. Secor artfully blends in sections of Bob Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country”, plus samples of Johnny Cash, all mixed in with his own quick-witted perfectly timed message.

While the song takes more than a few shots at Nashville’s creative decline, ultimately this too is a love letter to not only what Nashville was, but that the idea of Nashville endures, or as Secor puts it, “still running in our blood”. Having been to Nashville, I can understand the dichotomy. Sure the Honky Tonk Highway can be a drunken mess of broken dreams, but just off the strip there are still plenty of artists working away making great music, and the heart of the town still beats today as strong as ever.

“Story the Crow Told Me” is a thoughtful journey through all the great music that paved the way in Secor’s journey, paired with all the people that contributed to his success along the way. It’s also a toe-tapping good time that just gets better and better on each listen.

Best tracks: Busker’s Spell, Talkin’ Doc Blues, Old Man River, Catch Me If You Can, Thanks Again, What Nashville Was