Customer Reviews

Mercurial

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The Asylum Street Spankers defy easy categorization. Sticking resolutely to acoustic instruments including clarinet, harmonica, banjo and at times even musical saw, the Spankers perform a bewildering array of songs in just about every popular style extant in America since the end of World War I. Though the band's lineup changes with each recording, the two leaders have remained constant: Christina Marrs, whose vocal tone and range remind me of Barbara Cook with touches of Aretha Franklin and Betty Boop, and Wammo, who is truly one of a kind. The Spankers' MO is to take absolutely nothing seriously except their musicianship (which is polished to the point of glowing) and to celebrate all forms of pleasure, not excluding those that are generally considered to be either immoral, illegal or fattening. (For their sake, I hope John Ashcroft never gets hold of a copy of "Spanker Madness.") Their new album, "Mercurial"--so named for Mercury Hall in their home town of Austin, where this CD was recorded--basically is a sampler of everything that makes the Spankers great. They perform everything from true old-time numbers such as "Shine On Harvest Moon" and "Digga Digga Doo" to a hilarious cover of the B-52's "Dance This Mess Around." Christina Marrs lights up the torches in such down-and-dirty blues numbers as "Got My Mojo Workin'" and "Sugar in My Bowl," but it's Wammo who is the album's standout in his wonderful original, "Hick Hop," best described as a rumble between the posses of Toby Keith and Snoop Dogg. Sadly, "Mercurial" probably marks the last appearances of Stanley Smith and Korey Simeone as regular Spankers--Smith quit the band because of ill health, Simeone to pursue an acting career--but the new touring group of Spankers is as tight an ensemble as ever, and bodes well for the band's survival as a living monument to the Pleasure Principle.

This is the next best thing to a live performance. The recording at the Mercury Hall lends wonderful acoustics and I truly hope they record there again. Unlike most albums, where there is usually at least one bad or so-so tune, Mercurial is, from first to last track full of excellent music. Having seen the Spankers live on many occasions, the only thing missing is seeing them perform and watching the sparks fly. For those who are uninitiated to the wit and charm of the Spankers, this is an excellent first pick. Mojo, alone, is worth the full price. For those of us who are among the Spankers' growing list of fans, it's their best yet.

This album continues the legacy of the Spankers, a well known Austin favorite. If you liked "My Favorite Record" you'll love this one too. More of the same stuff that makes them the top all acoustic band around. Whether just plain fun, or superb musiscianship, they cover it all. "Got My Mojo Workin" comes a long way from Muddy Waters, but has a great groove. "Dance This Mess Around" takes the B52's into uncharted waters. "Hick Hop" combines "gansta rap and country murder ballads" to create a unique vibe. ("Play some Skynrd man!") These guys take no prisoners, everyone is fair game for a satirical take on their songs. Oh yeah, and they can flat out play!

This is the most amazing amalgam of alt country, old-timey swing, big band, blues and modern covers. No holds are barred, and no style is safe. Sparkling between these genre-bending excursions is some amazing musicianship. I haven't enjoyed an album this much in a long time. Their talent is startling original and fresh.

Backing up this superb release are class A sonics. I hold the recording engineers in awe to be able to mate the plaintive sounds of Christina Marrs singing a sultry ballad, and a wailing and crashing full-band assault in the next bar. It all sounds very live, organic and original.

The biggest problem that you run into with musical acts that run contrary to the grain of popular culture is the unavoidable point at which they begin to classify themselves as novelty or kitsch. Mercurial marks perhaps the closest the Asylum Street Spankers have come to this unfortunate calamity, and the record suffers for it.

Don't get me wrong--I would still recommend this album to just about anybody. The blues/jazz/swing/country amalgamation that we've come to categorize as "acoustic music" is nowhere done better than anything the Spankers have released, and this record gets included in that statement. Mercurial has catchy, up-tempo numbers (Digga Digga Doo), great jazzy melodies (D.R.I.N.K.), a few old stand-by numbers (It's A Sin To Tell A Lie)--basically, everything that a regular listener might be used to seeing from this great musical ensemble. And the high points for this particular outing (including, but not limited to, those tracks which I've listed) are very high.

The problem is that the low points are at least equally low. Reinterpreting Paul Revere to a fairly rudimentary swing instrumental performance doesn't make you clever--it really just makes the band sound uncreative. The reinterpretation of Dance This Mess Around, TV Party, and Hick Hop also mark campy departures from the solid foundation that's made the Asylum Street Spankers one of my favorite bands in the past. These sorts of novelty performances can be quite a lot of fun in a live venue, but on the record they end up making the band sound a lot like Weird Al Yankovic with less polka and more jazz.

I'll admit it--I have a prediliction against music that doesn't take itself at all seriously, and this particular album has a lot of that stink all over it. More forgiving fans will should be able to easily accept the record, and indeed I would recommend it to most listeners (though those just getting started with the Spankers might be better advised to try out Spanker Madness or, if you can find it, Hot Lunch). For me, however, I ended up a little bit disappointed, not in what the record is, but for what it could have been.

The first time I saw the Spankers was in 1998 in Austin. To me, that incarnation of the band will always be THE Asylum Street Spankers. But that's not to say that they still aren't the best thing to happen to American music since Bessie Smith. Mercurial, of course, is quintessential Spankers--just listen to the scatting on "Tight Like That", as Christina Marrs and Wammo counterpoint with one more voice (that I admit I can't identify)...Does it get any better than that? Or note how the group uses their genius to approximate (and improve upon) "Dance this Mess Around", using only acoustic instruments--if you've never heard a steel guitar banging out the chords for a B-52s song, you haven't lived. Or listen to Christina Marrs belt out "Got My Mojo Workin". Does it get any better than that?

Well, yes, actually, but you'll have to see them live. Until you can, Mercurial is a great way to get the Spanker experience.

Arrived as promised. Sounds good. Love the music.