Red Guitar Music

News, reviews and more

  • Home
  • News
  • Album Reviews
  • Live Reviews
  • Features
    • The Baker's Dozen
    • Inside The Song
  • Interviews
  • Tour News
  • Contact
Lucero_ATG_Digital_Cover.jpg

Lucero - Among The Ghosts (Album Review)

August 01, 2018 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Alt-Country, Alternative Rock, Americana

For the ninth studio album of their twenty-year career, Lucero were seemingly keen to switch things up a little. After a run of albums with producer Ted Hutt that utilised horns and more complex arrangements to fashion a Memphis soul-influenced sound (they even found room to slip in a tune by Memphis’ favourite sons Big Star) frontman/songwriter Ben Nichols and the band went in search of inspiration. They found it in the rear view mirror as ‘Among The Ghosts’ strips the arrangements back to their very foundations and reveals a darker sound more in keeping with their roots. When coupled with a change in Nichols’ approach to his writing, bought on by a settled family life and the birth of his daughter, the results are impressive. The horns may have gone but the soul remains.

For this new approach, the band enlisted producer Matt Ross-Spang (Jason Isbell, Margo Price, Drive-By Truckers) and recorded the album at Sam Phillips Recording Service in Memphis, a studio that must have plenty of ghosts and stories to tell. The result is a really cool, live sounding (the guys all played in the same room), record that should please existing fans and bring a few more on board. Lucero’s roots might be firmly planted in the Alt-Country of the late 90’s but ‘Ghosts’ should also appeal to fans of more Heartland rock ala Springsteen, Mellencamp or the less well known Jimmy Ryser.

Lucero by Dan Bull.

Lucero by Dan Bull.

Opening with the slow build title track ‘Ghosts’  explodes into life for the chorus with Nichols’ gravelly drawl escalating to a full on snarl “First word she said to me was goodbye” while drums pound and guitars rage. The assumption is that Nichols needs to balance family life with the demands of the road (Lucero regularly play over 200 shows a year). It’s a statement of intent that emphasises Lucero’s punky alt rock roots before Nichols tones things down a little for ‘Bottom Of The Sea’ his vocal now, oddly but effectively, more reminiscent of Billy Idol. Guitarist Brian Venable takes centre stage here with his ringing; echo drenched playing anchoring (no pun intended) the song. By ‘Everything Has Changed’ the band are really hitting their stride as Venable slips in a perfectly placed solo but the song would be far less successful without the organ contributions of Rick Steff (the new boy in the band as he only joined in 2006). The ivory tinkler switches to piano to supply the bedrock on which ‘Always Been You’ a dark mournful lament to a failed relationship is built. The first half of the album concludes with Venable again to the fore on ‘Cover Me’ (not the Springsteen song).

Buy on Amazon

‘To My Dearest Wife’ is up next and this superb song incorporates letters written by soldiers to their loved ones during the American Civil War, stories that remain relevant and poignant today. Interestingly Nichols adds a snippet from history via The Battle Hymn of The Republic “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the lord” to give the song a time and place and effectively bind the North and South together as real people with families engaged in a terrible conflict. ‘Long Way Back Home’ tells the tale of brothers trying to make it home after a robbery goes bad. Reminiscent of Springsteen or Michael McDermott Rick Steff’s keyboard smudges are a nice counterpoint to some darkly twangy guitar lines. ‘Loving’ was originally written for the Oscar-nominated film of the same name by Ben’s younger brother Jeff Nichols,  whose other credits include Mud starring Matthew McConaughey and Midnight Special. In the context of the film, which deals with a couple arrested for their interracial marriage in 1960’s Virginia, the lyrics are self-explanatory, but it works equally well here as a simple love song “I just want to be good enough for you” Nichols sings, his voice at its most tender. One of the most striking tracks on the album is ‘Back To The Night’ which features a quite unexpected spoken word interlude by actor Michael Shannon (a regular in Jeff Nichols’ films) which is as dark and as menacing as any of the characters he’s played on screen. Nichols’ vocal is guttural, John C. Stubblefield’s bass throbs while Brian Venable finds plenty of room for an extended guitar break. ‘Back To The Night’ is as epic a 4:13 as you’ll hear anywhere this year. The album concludes with a straight up roots rocker ‘For The Lonely Ones’ that finds those horns creeping back in which is cool to hear.

‘Among The Ghosts’ is a mighty fine record from a songwriter and a band that have no desire to play it safe. If ‘Among The Ghosts’ forms the backbone of their set when the band visit the UK for a run of dates in December then I’ll be very happy indeed.

Featured Album Reviews @RGM
John Surge and The Haymakers - Maybe You Don't Know Me EP
Sep 18, 2024
John Surge and The Haymakers - Maybe You Don't Know Me EP
Sep 18, 2024

To quote John Surge, “These five songs represent a real cross-section of the music we make”. John is referencing a new EP aptly titled, ‘Maybe You Don’t Know Me’. The ‘Almost Time’ album from last year was well received, but Surge still had a host of material that wasn’t quite right for that record but worked well in his live set. A live set that had gotten John noticed on the LA country scene in the first place. Surge re-connected with highly regarded Texas producer Tommy Detamore  {Doug Sahm, Jim Lauderdale, Sunny Sweeney, Jesse Daniel} and reenlisted many of the ‘Almost Time’ crew including his right-hand Haymaker guitarist Randy Volin, plus Brennen Leigh on harmony vocals, Brad Fordham (Dave Alvin/Hayes Carll) on bass, Tom Lewis (Junior Brown/Raul Malo) on drums and Floyd Domino (Asleep at the Wheel, Merle Haggard) on keyboards.

Sep 18, 2024
Noah Guthrie - Blue Wall (Album Review)
Jan 21, 2022
Noah Guthrie - Blue Wall (Album Review)
Jan 21, 2022

In 2022 everybody and their dog is making a record which can be both a blessing and a curse (as the RGM inbox often reminds me). The upside to this situation is the myriad ways to discover new artists, which brings me to Noah Guthrie. Admittedly Noah Guthrie is hardly a new name, as watchers of reality TV talent shows will already be well aware (Guthrie reached the semi-final of America’s Got Talent in 2018) and even appeared in the final season of Glee. Neither of these events popped up on my radar, but late one night, lost down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, I stumbled upon guitarist Rhett Shull preparing for a gig with a bloke named Noah Guthrie…

Jan 21, 2022
Lucero - When You Found Me (Album Review)
Jan 29, 2021
Lucero - When You Found Me (Album Review)
Jan 29, 2021

My belated introduction to Lucero was via their 2018 release ‘Among The Ghosts’ which proved to be one of the very best releases of that year. The tone was dark, the sound widescreen and the songs dragged you in and held on tight. I was lucky enough to catch Lucero at the Black Deer Festival in 2019 where on a bright sunny afternoon deep in the English countryside their songs proved equally effective as they would in a sweaty club. It was a powerful, gritty performance that reinforced my opinion that Lucero is at the top of their game. For the follow up to ‘Ghosts’ frontman Ben Nichols has expanded on the third-person, character-driven approach that had crept into his writing for ‘Ghosts’. Nichols mixes up family-driven tales of love and redemption firmly rooted in reality with interesting diversions into campfire tales and folklore. The other innovation to the Lucero sound finds Rick Steff employing a host of vintage synth sounds to bolster his usual organ/piano armoury. The resulting album could well turn out to be one of the best records of their career.

Jan 29, 2021
J.P. Harris - Sometimes Dogs Bark At Nothing (Album Review)
Oct 4, 2018
J.P. Harris - Sometimes Dogs Bark At Nothing (Album Review)
Oct 4, 2018

The really great thing about country music these days is the wide range of music associated with the genre. If you like your country with that Nashville sheen, or maybe look for something a little more pop or bro it’s out there. If you’re looking for a good old-fashioned tune, that’ll bring a tear to the eye because your dog died, or your wife/significant other left you, it’s out there. In many ways, due to the sheer weight of music being produced these days there really is something for everyone.  I’m happy to check out pretty much anything under the country/Americana banner but I must admit that you can’t beat an album that sounds old-school and timeless yet current. With that in mind, J.P. Harris has delivered a record that feels right, looks right and above all sounds right.

Oct 4, 2018
Lucero - Among The Ghosts (Album Review)
Aug 1, 2018
Lucero - Among The Ghosts (Album Review)
Aug 1, 2018

For the ninth studio album of their twenty-year career, Lucero were seemingly keen to switch things up a little. After a run of albums with producer Ted Hutt that utilised horns and more complex arrangements to fashion a Memphis soul-influenced sound (they even found room to slip in a tune by Memphis’ favourite sons Big Star) frontman/songwriter Ben Nichols and the band went in search of inspiration. They found it in the rear view mirror as ‘Among The Ghosts’ strips the arrangements back to their very foundations and reveals a darker sound more in keeping with their roots. When coupled with a change in Nichols’ approach to his writing, bought on by a settled family life and the birth of his daughter, the results are impressive. The horns may have gone but the soul remains.

Aug 1, 2018
Cowboy Junkies - All That Reckoning (Album Review)
Jul 12, 2018
Cowboy Junkies - All That Reckoning (Album Review)
Jul 12, 2018

Formed way back in 1985, Cowboy Junkies have become something of a Canadian institution over the decades with a run of albums released to both critical and fan praise. Things started off on a slightly unusual note with a covers album ‘Whites off Earth now!!’ before their sophomore release ‘The Trinity Sessions’ would put them on the world map selling over a million copies. Thirty years on from that particular landmark Cowboy Junkies return with their first album since 2012’s ‘The Wilderness’. This new release has been referred to by songwriter-guitarist Michael Timmins (one of the three Timmins siblings that form 3/4 of the band) as “These songs are about reckoning on a personal level and reckoning on a social level”. With this in mind, and as few bands do reflective melancholia better than Cowboy Junkies, this should be good.

Jul 12, 2018
Bill Kirchen & Austin De Lone - Transatlanticana (Album Review)
Mar 23, 2017
Bill Kirchen & Austin De Lone - Transatlanticana (Album Review)
Mar 23, 2017

If ever an album lived up to its title it must be ‘Transatlanticana’ which finds the “Titan of the Telecaster” Bill Kirchen recording an album with the “Godfather of Pub Rock” Austin De Lone. Needless to say the results are pretty amazing and the UK release via The Last Music Company / Proper Records features two bonus tracks.

Mar 23, 2017
Torgeir Waldemar - No Offending Borders (Album Review)
Mar 20, 2017
Torgeir Waldemar - No Offending Borders (Album Review)
Mar 20, 2017

Norwegian singer-songwriter Torgeir Waldemar released his debut album in 2014 to widespread acclaim, and a Norwegian Grammy Award nomination, for a record that had a marked 70’s Laurel Canyon influence. At first glance, the tall and bearded Waldemar looks like he should be fronting a Black Metal act with an indecipherable logo, luckily images are often deceptive, and Waldemar is more folky troubadour than extreme metal screamer as his debut disc proved. Three years on and ‘No Offending Borders’ finds Waldemar intent on expanding on his musical palette.

Mar 20, 2017
Lydia Loveless - Real (Album Review)
Aug 23, 2016
Lydia Loveless - Real (Album Review)
Aug 23, 2016

Hard to believe but ‘Real’ is the fourth album from Ohio native Lydia Loveless and she’s still only 25. On previous Bloodshot album releases Loveless has been compared to country and rock royalty in Loretta Lynn and Stevie Nicks alongside highly influential alt-rock pioneers The Replacements (needless to say with The Replacements name checked there are guitars on this record…actually that should read… there are GUITARS on this record). The album was recorded close to home at Sonic Lounge Studios in Columbus, Ohio with Joe Viers (Dr John, Twenty One Pilots) her regular producer and the result is a very fine record indeed.

Aug 23, 2016
The Naked Sun -Pickled Hearts EP (Album Review)
Sep 22, 2015
The Naked Sun -Pickled Hearts EP (Album Review)
Sep 22, 2015

The Naked Sun hail from Philadelphia, PA and deliver a brand of Indie roots rock they have tagged ‘Honest Rock’ which should appeal to fans of the genre that like their music to be heartfelt, real and raw. The band took their name from the Isaac Asimov novel that deals with the weighty issues of how we look at the environment we live in and how we interact with our neighbours, government and society in general. The Naked Sun live up to the Asimov connection with music that is always interesting, challenging and lyrically open to interpretation.

Sep 22, 2015
Elliott Brood - Work And Love (Album Review)
Oct 24, 2014
Elliott Brood - Work And Love (Album Review)
Oct 24, 2014

Canadian act Elliott Brood took a different approach for the recording of ‘Work and Love’ and decamped to the famed Bathouse Studios, on the shores of Lake Ontario. The studio is owned by The Tragically Hip and has been used by many of the best Canadian acts over the years including Blue Rodeo, Bruce Cockburn and Big Wreck. The band worked with Ian Blurton (Change Of Heart / Skydiggers / Amy Millan) and the resulting album, their first with an outside producer, is a concise nine song set that the trio consider their most personal to date

Oct 24, 2014
Ryan Adams - Ryan Adams
Sep 4, 2014
Ryan Adams - Ryan Adams
Sep 4, 2014

In the three year period since ‘Ashes & Fire’ ex Whiskeytown frontman Ryan Adams hasn’t exactly kept a low profile. His production credits during this period include Fall Out Boy, Ethan Johns and Jenny Lewis and he even formed a band oddly called Pornography to release a single. Not bad for someone who is also running his PAX AM record company / website business.

Sep 4, 2014
August 01, 2018 /David Vousden
Lucero, Among The Ghosts
Album Reviews, Alt-Country, Alternative Rock, Americana
  • Newer
  • Older
News RSS
Album Reviews RSS
Live Reviews RSS
Foreign Music CDJapan

Red Guitar Music is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.co.uk and affiliated sites.

Powered by Squarespace