There's a heart-warmingly analogue feel to this album, which is built upon foundations of proper vintage values. It's not just the sound, but the feel, the songwriting. There's nothing showy about it, and Doucet leads his band through a collection of no-nonsense 70's style r'n'b (that's rhythm 'n' blues, kids, not that sick digital crap you get on the radio nowadays).
I could complain that Doucet does nothing to extend the well-established form, but that would be entirely missing the point. 'Steel City Trawler' isn't about innovation, it's about straight down the line rock 'n' roll, nothing more and nothing less. There's no pretence, just good, traditional songwriting and musicianship.
Doucet takes some interesting and unusual angles, too. Amongst the staple fares of hard livin', travellin', boozin' and dirty, dirty blondes, Doucet considers metaphorical monkeys, takes to long-distance running to burn off stress, battles insomnia (a recurring theme) and contemplates the predicament of the late Ian Curtis. None of it sounds remotely forced, and there's no sense that Doucet's being wilfully fatuous or flippant. In fact, there's no sense of anything other than Doucet being himself, the result being a spirited album that boasts some decent stompalong tunes and hooky choruses.
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Luke Doucet on MySpace
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