Customer Reviews

Fort Recovery

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a fantastic album, the best I have heard in a while. The sound is something of a mix between Son Volt and Drive by Truckers, but completely unique and better than anything those two have done recently. I really like the sound; it is not "poppy" at all like some of Wilco's stuff, or like the Band of Horses new album that is over-hyped. The songs are real and of high quality throughout, not a clunker on the album. This is one that will hold up over the years.

pretty melodies, hard rocking guitars and drums, evocative lyrics. centro-matic songs get stuck in your head pretty quickly. they remind me of REM songs played in the style of crazy horse or pavement. this is probably my favorite of their albums. you can throw it on and listen start to finish without wanting to skip a song.

buy this CD and you'll achieve maximum sonic sweetness.

also, see the band live if you get the chance. they bring a bunch of extra rock to the songs when they play 'em live.

This is the sixth release from this Texas band led by singer/songwriter Will Johnson. Centro-Matic have steadily developed a sizeable & loyal cult following with their trademark raw pop/rock poignancy and uncompromising delivery. "Fort Recovery" is the moment they've been searching for the past ten years.
The album begins with a soul-wrenching slide guitar refrain that melts into some of the most heartfelt, raspy vocals in this universe. Then the power rises. Without losing an ounce of passion, the volume cranks, the voice strains with a gripping urgency, the guitars roar...and back we move to the soft slap in the face, the tug that migrates with an intimate ease from primal heartbeat to the zipper on your pants--and that's just the first song!
Will Johnson's voice was custom-made to rip your still happily beating heart right out of your chest cavity, while you nod your head to the compelling rhythms, and think to yourself that this is just about the most meaningful damn experience you've ever had. It has that dark, sad, smoky quality that recalls every night you've ever sat alone in a bar after last call, listening to the band play the tearjerk ballad that precedes the closing curtain-call rocker--and hearing nothing but the devastating sound of your own loneliness.
The songs ring like myths of the maligned romantic anti-hero. The good guy may not win, but damned if he's not gonna offer you the chance to submerge every fiber of your being into the boiling cauldron of his pain. And you'll think you're having a good time, too. These are tales of the twisted lovelorn--those who find themselves locked in alternate realities where good and evil meld as the best of friends. The poignant lyricism is comfortably surrounded by subtly hook-laden melodies that drag you into the center of the mix, like a black-hole bound torpedo of love.
Irresistible vocals and genuinely compelling songwriting aside, the real star here may be the production. Drummer Matt Pence and co-producer Jeff Powell have created a warm, truly inviting atmosphere that collides beautifully with raw, distorted guitars--exuding a vibrant, grabbing immediacy. The bass/percussion rhythms sit beside you like a best friend, smiling and nodding their heads every time a tear traces its course over the smiling ridge of your cheekbone. Within this challengingly warm-but-edgy climate of comfort, Johnson's plaintive voice rises and falls in the mix like a yo-yo gone astray--the spinning cylinder seeking solace as it crawls the string from barren, naked truth to a deep-throated mumbling buried under layers of simple, beautiful dissonance. This is a place you want to be for a long, long time.
Stand-out tracks abound, including: "Calling Thermatico"--Raw and primal, but thick, warm chords with a T. Rex beat and a sincerity that makes you think it was Will Johnson who died for your sins...before loping off into the distance with a falsetto cowboy hum and light, but persistent, traveling percussion. "Take A Rake"--This is the best Wilco song you've never heard. The ghost of Jeff Tweedy sucks Will Johnson's soul into the nether-realm of epic Americana songcraft. Big, semi-distorted riffs of poignant post-country melody finally find a slowly ripping Black Sabbath finale. "Take The Maps And Run"--A soft and surprisingly bouncy, almost pop moment, this strangely compelling rhythm-driven track is led by near-whispery vocals which naturally devolve into cheery, semantic nonsense propelled by the light, repetitive beat to a destination unknown, but unquestionably desired. "Patience For The Ride"--The epitome of emotion-packed Americana balladry, with a voice that wants you, I mean really wants you, to be there for the whole ride; and hooks that slay, with the soft-but-serious love scars of a red velvet whip. This song wants, and deserves, all you've got.
Centro-Matic is a band at their creative peak on "Fort Recovery". This is the sound of some Texas boys who've found the magic touch, playing their hearts out. One of this year's very best!

There may be a finer band on the planet, and there may be a finer songwriter, but if there is, I haven't heard it. Centro-matic are one of Will Johnson's outlets, where the rock is turned up to full Neil Young Crazy Horse, alongside the more contemplative, new-Americana, South San Gabriel and his beautiful solo work. This, the band's seventh album, may just be their best work, opening with the glorious Covered Up In Mines, and proceeding through songs that, at turns, display crunching fuzz rock, and then sweeping beauty. In fact, it is difficult not to use the word 'masterpiece' in any review. The core of the work is Will Johnson - his songs work so well on acoustic guitar that, worked up into full band versions, and accentuated with rock solid instrumentation and the great feeling of studio improvisation, they can't help but dig their way in, until repeated listening is not just desirable, but essential. Easily the best album of the year, so far.

Surprising that there aren't more reviews on this being that its been out for 4 months. Take the elements of Stones period "Exile on Main Street" a little Byrds melodic edge, and mix things up a `bit and you've got one of the best contemporary rock bands currently on the planet. They've smoothed the edges a bit on "Fort Recovery" but still evoke emotional response from anyone within listening distance. From the hypnotic induced beat of "Calling Thermatico" to the poetically stated "The Fugitives Have Won" Will Johnson's writing contiunes to mature well beyond most of what passes as lyrical content by major label acts.
Simply put, once you've discovered these Denton,Texas masters your hooked for life! Highly recommended for beginners as well as ardent supporters!

Centro-matic, hailing from the North Texas college town of Denton, Texas has done it this time with "Fort Recovery." I looked at the other reviews here on Amazon, saw that they all rated out at five stars, and oh so wanted to buck the trend, not jump on the bandwagon and give it a downgrade. Alas, I could not because this Centro-matic's 7th work is that good...a engaging listen from beginning to end.

Why You'll Love It?
The album applies Will Johnson's, the central cog in the Centro-matic wheel, husky voice layered throughout ebbing and flowing. It blends with the guitar work and occasionally climbs above. The opening track "Covered Up In Mines," has a laid back groove with an almost Hawaiian-sounding slide guitar easing in and out. The album doesn't start off with a kick, instead leading with a groove.

"Calling Thermatico," mixes in some poetry with a crunchy guitar line and equals one of "Fort Recovery's" centerpieces. "We were elated that thermatico / had never passed us by / unintimadated by the officers and prostitutes in line / early in the century he was the larcenist / the gasohol arsonist, / the consequent flier." Throughout the song, you think it's catchy and moves along all expected straightforward, American pop rock supreme. And then a moment happens to provide an understated exclamation to the song. The guitar drops out, and Johnson's falsetto takes over with a haunting high chime. The drum goes all rim shots, a little hand clapping kicks in and you have a musical moment sublime.

Why you may not give it love so much?
Well there aren't many reasons to fill in this category. If you like your music to move along at a steady clip, you may find a few of the songs more acoustic-tinged numbers dragging a bit for your taste. One such number is track 4, "I See Through You." Though beautifully composed, you may find yourself wanting more structure and substance. The lyrics are very singer-songwriter sincere, contemplative and deep, "Just listen to all the voices nature brings / pray the light will keep you 'til your final song / because the more I learn about this world / the less I find that I'm afraid to die." It may be a skipable track but sometimes you'll be in that mood to slow down and haze away a deep contemplative day and this may just be the thing that fits.

There are so many other good and sublime moments on Centro-matic's "Fort Recovery," that it's hard to capture them all...you'll just have to listen for yourself. From the understated, "Triggers and Trash Heaps," to the jump and bounce of "Patience For The Ride," it's a listen that fits your life. Get in your car and drive up to Denton-town from wherever you are and listen to "Fort Recovery," as the earth passes you by. It's a gift. --mmw

I downloaded this album off emusic shortly after its release, and it quickly became a favorite of mine. It's been 2 years now and it still just doesn't get old! I've listened to it many times and find every aspect of it - the song arrangements, the musicianship, the lyrics - beautifully balanced. It certainly will be an album that stands the test of time.

It's a pretty mellow album that still manages to rock pretty hard. I know that sounds contradictory, but it's true! One listen through and you'll understand what I mean. So, if you are a fan of the indie rock scene or at least anyone looking to expand your musical tastes, check it out. You won't be disappointed!