Customer Reviews

Fought Down

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

The best thing I can say about it is that I genuinely enjoy listening to it. It's not grating, sonically dissonant or crappy. It's not one of those records where you sit there, squinting in pain with flopsweat on your forehead, rocking back and forth and chanting to yourself, "It sounds like crap, so it must be good." If it sounded terrible, I'd tell you. I believe the artist should suffer for their music, not the listener.

If you're into "I Hate My Daddy" music, then this isn't for you. It's big-boy music. There are songs on this CD that elevate your soul. "Glitter On" is one of them and it's followed by "Like a Train," which is a damn-good rock song with a dirty, driving guitar track. That song rocks and is worth the price of the CD alone. I've listened to it about 15 times now and haven't got tired of it yet. I'm listening to it right now.

I usually detest comparing groups or records to more well-known acts, but since it seems to be the norm in review writing, I guess I'll give it a shot. The record reels you in with a deceptive hook. You're listening to it and thinking, "Hey, it's the Eagles, except they've kicked out Glenn Frey and replaced him with a Mick Jagger whose balls have dropped," yet a distinctive and cool sound gradually emerges that's both amazingly original, yet slightly evocative of other acts. It delves into chicken-wire country in a few places, but instead of detracting from from the overall feel of the record, it adds a layer of depth and grit that gives the album a nice gut-punch. After listening to the CD and reflecting on it, I was left with the impression of a driving, dark undercurrent to a "Hey, whaddya gonna do?" sensibility.

So, buy the damned thing, already. These aren't a bunch of rich geezers cranking out a concept-album or excreting a record for the teeny-bopper set. It's good, clean, American music that's got a good beat and will make you happy.

The lyrics to the first track, "Ain't They Pretty" just about perfectly describe the experience of listening to this album -- You're in for a Good Time.

This album is a prime example of the very reasons I continue to love and support independent musicians and labels. The production is crisp and clear, has a great dynamic range but without having that overproduced and "all-faders up" mastered sound that seems to be the rage nowadays. The songwriting and arrangements are all excellent and the musicianship consistently top-notch. Most importantly, however, is the fact that it sounds like they had FUN making this album, because every track, even the slower, quieter ones, brings a smile to my face.

It's a quick and terse disc, clocking in at just under 39 minutes, but I would rather spend cold hard cash on an short album of ten good songs than a sixteen song crap-opus where only one song is listenable. On "Fought Down", every song is not only insanely listenable, but they are catchy like smallpox -- you'll be singing along when the second chorus comes around.

The album is perfect because of its small imperfections. As an example off the top of my head, when Layne strains and breaks to belt out the word 'ignore' in "I Should Be That Guy", you feel a sense of earnest and honesty that you just don't get from pitch correction, massive overdubs and thousands of takes. It's raw. It's real. It's awesome.

The album runs the gamut from the soft and melancholy "Lincoln Town Car", to the country swing and swagger of "The Sun Don't Shine" and "Here's to You" to the newly arranged classic "Worried" to rockers like "Fought Down" and the indescribable "Mama Take Another Stand" (Is it head-bobbing arena rock? Is it the music for the ending credits of movie where the protagonists die in a desert shootout? I don't know, but it rules).

It's 40 minutes of fun. Go buy this album now, it's a kick in the pants and you'll thank me for it later.

Just listen to Glitter On a couple times. It's one of those melodies that doesn't sound so much invented as discovered, like a diamond underground, waiting to be unearthed. The rest of the album is nearly that good, even when the song lasts for like nine billion minutes (I Should Be That Guy). And Lincoln Town Car features this astonishing bit of lyric poetry, which manages to be vague, explicit, lurid, and almost innocent, all at the same time: "Your tongue was sweet / You legs were strong / I'm wasted out my head." This is music for people who like songs, singing, guitars, and drums.

"Fought Down" is real rock'n'roll.

"Fought Down" is also some real country.

"Fought Down" is real good, really loud.

Let your older friends hear it, and they'll wonder how they missed a 1972 Rolling Stones album. Play it for your younger friends, and they'll think you're on the cutting edge of alt-rock.

But mostly, just listen to it by yourself with a big glass of cheap red wine -- and wonder why it seems so hard these days to find such good, honest music.

I expected a passable vanity project - "Oh look, a writer's making a record, how cute!" Instead, I found a fantastic bunch of songs that smell like whiskey and feel like summer.

The title track sounds like Dinosaur Jr. busting into a Drive-By Truckers show; it will force you to grab your keys and drive around town shouting along with its chorus. If it's not on a bunch of Top 50 lists at the end of the year then there is no musical justice in this world.

As great as "Fought Down" is, the Corvids really shine in the slower tempo tracks like "Worried" and the wonderfully rambling "Here's to You." The songs feel familiar while avoiding cliche.

You can hear the joy with which the band made the record, which is an awesome accomplishment. I can't wait to listen to it in the warm weather.

Forget labels. Forget "alt-country", forget categories. Forget the idea that this is a "vanity project", whatever the hell that means.

This CD rocks. Really. Turn the stereo to LOUD and hit the repeat button; this music is that good.

Darn, I haven't had so much fun listening to a CD in ages.

I'm not sure how I'd classify it -- alt-country? Roots rock? -- and it doesn't really matter; it's a refreshing change from the usual hyper-produced pop fluff that sounds like audio Teflon or mindless techno made up of two drum loops and a synth track. Ken Layne's Jaggeresque vocals complement gritty, real instruments played by people who actually give a damn, and lyrics that actually have some wit to them (folks familiar with Trader Joe's will enjoy the "Two-Buck Chuck" reference). It's about as far as you can get from mass-produced "Bulk Popular Music Product" (you know, the stuff manufactured in soulless factories in the Rust Belt and shipped to Best Buy in 55 gallon drums), and it's wonderful.

If "Mama, Take Another Stand" doesn't instantly get your toes a-tappin', check your pulse. You might be dead.