Fought Down

Ken Layne, Ken Layne and the Corvids | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 7, 2004)
• Original Release Date: January 7, 2004
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Scrub Jay Records
• ASIN: B0001AC3KY
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #781,539 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I guess I'm a little bit country..., January 12, 2004

By 

S. Gigl "Steve G." (Crystal, MN United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fought Down (Audio CD)

Being mainly a hard rock and/or heavy metal guy--and considering the usual description of the Corvids as "alt-country"--I was surprised that I really enjoyed some of the samples that Ken Layne posted on his web site a few months ago. It's obviously not the style of vocals (or instrumentation) I'm used to, but there was an intensity and musicianship there that intrigued me. So when the chance came to pre-order "Fought Down," I plunked down my money in the hopes that I'd find a couple more songs that I enjoyed.

Surprise: it's ALL really, really good. The recording quality is excellent and everything from the songwriting to the mix takes advantage of that, so this CD sounds like a million bucks. Songs like "Fought Down" and "I Should Be That Guy," have more than enough rock in them to be instantly accessible to me, and the quieter and/or country-sounding songs like "Ain't They Pretty" and "Lincoln Town Car" successfully avoid boring cliches both musically and lyrically, and they grew on me really quickly.

I still don't know what "alt-country" is, but I know what I like, and I highly recommend this CD.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An "Exile on Main Street" for the 21st Century!, January 12, 2004

By 

Glenn H. Reynolds "Instapundit" (Knoxville, TN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fought Down (Audio CD)

The album rocks. Is it "alt-country?" I guess if the Nebraska Guitar Militia is alt-country, this qualifies, but what it really is is thoughtful rock with good lyrics and some country elements here and there. It really does sound like an updated verison of "Exile on Main Street," from Layne's Jaggeresque vocals to the Mick Taylor style guitars. But it's not a return to retroville -- it sounds up to date at the same time.

Together with Bob Walkenhorst's "The Beginner" (which it resembles in some ways), this is my favorite rock album of 2003/2004.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Damn good music, January 24, 2004

By 

Howard Owens (Pittsford, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fought Down (Audio CD)

No ----. "Fought Down" is a ------- great CD.

If you like good music -- even if your tastes doesn't always run to country or rock -- you will thank yourself from now until the freezing over of the Gulf of Mexico if you buy "Fought Down."

Ken Layne and the Corvids have managed to cobble together 10 songs that are stellar, not just because the lyrics are witty and the melodies intelligent, but because the playing is as tight and spot on as any band can get, and the production shimmers like a Caribbean seashore.

Songs like "I Should Be That Guy," "The Sun Don't Shine," "Mama, Take Another Stand," "Here's to You," and the title track will bore deep into your cranium and refuse to leave.

Of course great songs make you want to sing along, but the best of these make you want to crawl inside of them and live there for a while.

I want to tell you that "Fought Down" reminds me in parts of Gram Parsons, and the Rolling Stones, and Steve Earle, and Uncle Tupelo, but I'm afraid if you don't like any of those guys, it will prejudice against the CD. "Fought Down" reminds me of all of that, but it's so much more than a summation of Ken Layne's influences, and it's so much more than just another country album -- even as I think of songs like "Here's to You" as a modern honky tonk classic -- or a rock album, and it's certainly more than just another piece of Americana schlock. It is music that will move you even if you generally shy away from the whole country vibe, but still speak to your hillbilly soul if that's what you want.

Trust me on this -- I've listened to tens of thousands of songs over the years, songs from every conceivable genre. What you hear on "Fought Down" is more than just music met to fit in a particular niche, to appeal to a certain demographic or snuggle up to a narrowly defined market. It is music created with a single goal: to please people who love music. Forget whatever labels you think might apply to "Fought Down." Enjoy it because it is simply too good not to enjoy.

This is a CD that will be in my music collection forever. It will be part of a regular rotation of CDs I never grow tired of. It is simply that good.