Oh Brother is the ninth album by Dawes and this time they are stripped back to a basic duo of brothers Griffin and Taylor Goldsmith and co-produced by the brothers and Mike Viola with some additional guitar from Trevor Menear.
The album opens with Mister Los Angeles who is apparently coming for you, so make sure you're not a victim in need of help and analysis, this stripped back guitar and drums approach makes me listen to the ideas streaming through the vocals, that eventually get a little bit over the top Prince like.
Front Row Seat is what they want at the game of life, it doesn't matter if it's an airbourne toxic event or something less malign, they will jam their way through it, while sitting in the front row as the guitar solo sounds quite hopeful.
Still Strangers Sometimes is for long term lovers who at times seem like they have never been together at all, no matter how intertwined their lives are, they still diverge enough to allow the music to fly off in several different direction, the best bit for me is the electric guitar solo, will they ever lose that feeling.
Surprise! Opens with a sinuous bassline that has a Fernando Saunders type feel to it, this is a sparing investigation into the heart of your expectations.
House Parties is the main single from the album, that reminisces about all the weird and wonderful House Parties they have been invited to over the years over a gloriously re-worked familiar old tune.
King Of The Never Wills is a slow reflective song about one of those people we all know, who really ought to have done way more and been total stars, but something always stops them from crossing the line, from a legend on the sidelines to a real legend.
The Game works itself out round a semi military beat, the blues still run the game obviously, what you must do to get preferment and rise up the slippery pole, if you won't do that thing, you'll never get that gatekeeper to open the door to the prize you seek, winning that game.
Enough Already a perfect title for the times we live in, they list all the things they've had enough of, this song should be far more bitter twisted and angry than it is. it does however have the most interesting percussion and guitar flourishes on the album.
The album closes with Hilarity Ensues a song, about two Knuckleheads falling in love and helping to ensure the stupidity is passed down to the sprogs they inevitably produce while sounding like Peter Sarstedt's bastard offspring.
Find out more at https://dawes-the-band.myshopify.com/products/oh-brother-lp https://dawes-the-band.myshopify.com/products/oh-brother-cd https://dawestheband.com/ https://www.facebook.com/Dawestheband https://found.ee/Dawes-OhBrother
