History from Below (Amazon Exclusive Version)

Delta Spirit | Format: MP3 Music

Product Details

• Original Release Date: June 8, 2010
• Label: Rounder Records
• Total Length: 55:30
• Genres:
  • Pop > Adult Contemporary
  • Rock
• ASIN: B003NTN2ZK
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,182 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Album that shows great progression for Delta Spirit July 7, 2010

By DRoberts

Format:MP3 Music

This album has been on constant repeat in my iPod and iTunes. History From Below is an album that should be devoured from beginning to end. It has folk rock tilt and shifts between both even combining the two elements at times. The first albumOde to Sunshine had a couple of hits but nothing near the magnitude of History. The songwriting skills of Matt Vasquez are second to none in today's music world and it shows in the progression from debut album to sophomore album. I read somewhere else that the album was based on pieces of Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present. Below are brief blips about the songs.
1. 9/11: A fresh blast to the ears and Vasquez's raspy voice takes center stage.
2. Bushwick Blues: One of my favorite songs on the album. This song has rock anthem written all over it. The song will get the blood flowing and the fist pumping.
3. Salt in the Wound: the album slows down after the two rowdy songs before this one. It fits perfectly and is a reflection on good and evil.
4. White Table: drums begin the song and are consistent throughout. This one has some dirty string guitar in it as well like a grunge guitar with a folk theme.
5. Randsom Man: Vocals with a little atmospheric music. This song shows the true range of Vasquez and his emotion bleeds through to the listener.
6. Devil Knows Your Dead: The album begins to pick back up with a simple instrument arrangement. The vocals are once again really strong.
7. Golden State: This song ramps the album back up to full speed. The backing vocals with Vasquez work so well and this song has really grown on me.

A note on songs 8-11. Most of the time I stop listening to an album by this point because the first 7 songs are normally the strongest on the album. This is not the case on History from Below.

8. Scarecrow: there are so many atmospheric sounds going on in this song like airplanes flying overhead, birds chirping, and sounds of cars. This song has an acoustic guitar to go along with the vocals and not much else.
9. Vivian: harmonica begins the song and then it takes off. The vocals flow slowly throughout the song. A heartfelt song about a special someone to the singer.
10. St. Francis: This song is unreal with my foot constantly tapping throughout and me yelling the lyrics. It does a great job for the lead-up to Ballad of Vitaly.
11. Ballad of Vitaly: the true masterpiece on this album at 8 minutes. The song is a gut wrenching tale of revenge and the antagonist is given a chance at redemption that he does not take. This song is unbelievable and should not be missed.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Delta Spirit - History From Below 8/10 June 15, 2010

By Rudolph Klapper VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

My most cherished bands have always appealed to me not only with a sense of timelessness but with a feeling of placelessness as well, as if they could be from anywhere or, even better, if they evoke the sound of a region or era without coming off as copycats or sycophantic rubes. By only their second album, Delta Spirit is already rapidly becoming one of my favorite unsigned bands, thanks largely to their ability to pull off just that aura of sounding like a region whose music I unabashedly love (the South) while hailing from a place I'd love to visit (San Diego). These are two dots one would likely not be able to connect listening to the band - singer Matthew Vasquez's whiskey-soaked voice calls to mind the Allman Brothers Band or the cracked rasp of Walkmen vocalist Hamilton Leithauser, while the band pumps out a genuinely raucous Southern-fried blues rock that has matured well since their 2008 debut. History From Below is just what a sophomore effort should be, equal parts a step forward and eleven songs stronger, all the red-blooded rock and soulful vitality of their debut while expanding on their trademark Americana sound.

To be honest, there was nothing here that struck me as forcefully as Ode to Sunshine's first single, "Trashcan," nor nothing as quite as in-your-face raw "People C'mon," but unlike their debut, History From Below is quite the studio album, revealing more and more upon each subsequent listen. The band's growth as songwriters is quite pronounced, as a listen to a slow burner like "White Table" or the flamenco spice on "St. Francis" makes apparent. Delta Spirit never would have tried the conceit of an eight-minute closer before like they do here, but "Ballad of Vitality" never crumbles under the weight of its own ambition, nor ever really feels like an eight-minute song, which is probably the greatest compliment I could give it. Swelling as it does from a campfire ballad to a charging blues beast, "Ballad of Vitality" exemplifies the band's evolution from dyed-in-the-wool live performers to accomplished studio artists. That talent of transferring their backwoods bar-band vibe onto record isn't something to be taken lightly, allowing a tune like "911," one that fits best in a live setting, to coexist seamlessly with a acoustic ballad like "Scarecrow" without a hitch. It's an impressive achievement, and one many bands that have made their name on the road have been unable to pull off.

But perhaps the greatest praise should go to Vasquez, who, in the span of only two records, has already become one of indie's most distinctive and powerful vocalists. I don't think the band knew what they were getting when they found Vasquez playing guitar for money near a train stop, but he possesses a throaty set of pipes that take just as well to vicious love songs as they do to gentle ballads. He really is the band's identity, taking the same kind of guitar-fueled Americana so many bands are doing nowadays and injecting it with the kind of vigor and passion that a group like Fleet Foxes wish they could have. The best parts of the record are when Vasquez really takes off, like when he goes into full-on tears-in-my-beer self-flagellation on "Vivian" or the way his howl tears itself apart so beautifully on the final chorus of "Bushwick Blues." And when Vasquez is practically the lone instrument as he is on the record's centerpiece, the haunting, lovely "Ransom Man," it's clear that he is the heart and fire that will be the reason this band this hits it big. And big they should be. I've gone through plenty of bands who have teased me with excellent debuts and then floundered on the follow ups (damn you Futureheads), but Delta Spirit have already proved they can maintain a level of consistency matched with a clear penchant for musical growth that has me fairly salivating for what the future holds.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing! Different from the first, but fantastic nonetheless! June 20, 2010

By Lael

Format:Audio CD

Honestly, I was not sold the fist time through the album. But I was looking forward to an album full of "Trashcan". And after about the third listen, I can't take this CD out of my player! These guys are amazing! And a note to all those who are just discovering Delta Spirit, buy the fist album also. You will not be disappointed. Thank you Delta Spirit for creating another spectacular work of art!