Customer Reviews

Marble Son

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

 

 

Describing Jesse Sykes as Alt-Country of Folk is a crime. Makes you think of Steve Earle in a dress. This is like Radiohead meets GY!BE meets Led Zeppelin meets... I don't know... a hugely talented female singer? And not just a singer. An artist. These are some beautiful lyrics with some depth and meaning. And the instrumentals are fantastic. I heard one track from this on a local radio station and bought it on a whim. I certainly didn't expect such a completely enjoyable album. On my first listen I was bummed when the last track ended... I wanted it to go on. This is really an excellent album.

Anyone who'd rather watch a Kirusawa film over the latest "Transformers" should fall in love with this record! Marble Son is a fantastic achievement and if symmetry and balance are laws of nature--this record and band's reputation will inevitably ascend to legendary heights. It really doesn't matter how you listen to it--sit down, dig in, and let it take you on a journey or put it on in the other room--it will get under your skin leaving you unwittingly transformed and longing for more. It's classic yet progressive, and somehow timeless--carrying you into a dream world of diverse aural ecosystems, leading you from primeval forest to stormy, windswept beaches to sunlit meadows. Each song is a uniquely inspired experience and collectively become a stunning soundtrack capturing a time of mesmerizing human achievements mirrored by equally apalling tragedy. It's sophisticated but not isolating--marrying good ol' rattle your bones rock and roll (and guitar work with the heart, soul, skill, and desperation not seen since Richards and Page), with elements of classical, folk, and blues in the tradition of Gershwin. And in keeping with Shakespeare's forte--Sykes proves entertainment doesn't need to be emotionally vapid to be downright addictive. Marble Son is a salve for anyone who longs for the days when rock and roll artists testified; pulled up to your house with tires squealing, threw you in and dragged you along for what was sure to be a harrowing, yet unforgettable experience. Marble Son is the most satisfying album I've heard in years, yet I'm left with the distinct impression there's a lot more to come--that even as I write this, Sykes & Co are frantically taking stock of their apparently bottomless musical arsenal, desperate to create new soundscapes that are rich and powerful enough to illuminate the depths of Sykes' sage visions.

Marble Son is one of the best CD'S I've heard this year ! The guitar playing by Phil Wandscher rocks ! Jessie's voice is great throughout the CD !! I"ve been listening to this constantly since I bought it ! On My Best Of List for 2011 !! If they come to your town make sure to go see them !!

I have been a fan for years. this record shows remarkable growth as they experiment with more complex arrangements and overall darker tone. timeless songs and amazing voice tie it all together. shaping up to be my favorite record of 2011.

The 4th album from this Seattle band opens with a brilliant and totally unexpected 8 ½ minute
psychedelic prog-rock epic, before moving into the band's trademark Americana ballad style.
These are poignant, dreamy country/folk rock songs with echoic guitar tremolo notes vibrating the
air around heavenly female vocals, and the yearning call of lap steel haunting the prairie amidst
the occasional penetrating Western psychedelic outburst. Former members of Whiskeytown,
Hominy. Something like a combination of Neko Case, Lucinda Williams & Black Mountain

I've been listening to Jesse Syke's music since her first album "Reckless Burning",
a masterpiece of late night alt country with songs such as Doralee , which is still my favorite song of hers. Jesse's voice is a haunting beatific thang, perhaps like a southern Grace Slick. Her Second album "Oh My Girl" is a bit repetitive but none-the-less haunting and beautiful. The third album "Like Love, Lust &...."
finds Ms. Sykes experimenting with pop/psych/garagey styles alternating with her
lo-fi alt country to mixed results.
This CD I can't listen to all the way through, a song will start out brilliantly
with her magnificent voice and creative lyrics then Phil Wandsher will come blazing in with his one trick pony guitar solos cranked up to eleven and totally destroy the mood. One yearns for a Richard Thompson or David Rawlings guitar back-up some-body with some sensitivity to the proceedings instead of that "listen to me I'm a rock star" bluster. All of Mr Wandsher's solos are the same chord changes and phrasing he has been doing for years-one solo fits all!
My Suggestion is that Ms. Sykes fire her producer and hire Joe Henry and ask
Bob Dylan or Lucinda Williams if they know a good guitar player with some sensitivity. Perhaps hire The Black Angels to play the more psychedelic stuff.
Mike Mogis would know what to do!