Customer Reviews

Secret South

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On this, their third full-length studio album, Sixteen Horsepower has proved what their long-time fans have always known: no one else is doing this kind of music quite this well! The musical landscape of Secret South is something akin to the Appalachian woods: deep and complex. There are so many layers here that you will find something new nearly every time you experience these eleven songs. Frontman, David Eugene Edwards, who says he wrote this album at the piano, has set aside many of the instruments that made their sound so unique in the past. What do we have left? One incredible piece of artistry.

What may strike loyal fans as something a bit different is the change in mood on this album. There are far fewer pot-boilers here as there were in the past. Sure "Clogger" kick-starts the album with some real fire, but the sustaining 'feel' of the whole project is more of water rising to a rolling boil. "Cinder Alley" and "Splinters" (two of my early favorites here) are great examples. To compare the beginning and ending of the songs you might not have guessed Edwards and co. would `go there.' These guys, instead of torching gasoline-soaked bonfires like they have in the past, turn up the flame slowly. Soon the songs are well-ablaze. "Strawfoot" is a great example of how you may find yourself listening intently at the subtle beginning but soon discover your toes are tapping.

What I hear here is the sound of a group of musicians who have matured to the point of restraint. They have proven they can rock many times in the past, and with great success! Here the musical artistry is more controlled and, as a result, becomes even more beautiful. The addition of strings has provided a 'lushness' in places that was missing before. Dare I say it, 16hp at times sound elegant!

Lyrically these songs are as gripping and unforgettable as ever. "Praying Arm Lane" and "Poor Mouth" are among the finest pieces David has ever written. Familiar denizens of the dark land where 16hp is wont to inhabit are back for return appearances: Christ, Satan, persevering saints and woe-begone sinners. Of special note here are several references to Narnia (in "Clogger," "Splinters" and "Just Like Birds"). Witness the power of a redeemed imagination in David's tremendous writing. It rarely gets any better than this!

One song I keep going back to is "Nobody 'Cept You," the Dylan cover. This has been a favorite of those who have seen 16hp live, but now we have it for keeps! Thanks, guys! For me Secret South proves right (once again) those of us who consider ourselves 16hp "pushers." We traffic in their music. We even try to get our friends addicted, and sometimes it works! I consider Secret South tremendous ammunition for spreading the fame of my favorite band. Let's just pray they don't stay such a secret much longer.

(Hard-core 16hp fans: make sure you hear the "Clogger Remix" CD. It is much more than a mere remix. It is a phenomenal reworking of the song to a very beautiful and haunting piece that demands repeated listening!)

These Denver boys have for years been evolving and changing from the off-kiltercountry sound to a more defined and somewhat darker rock sound. Don't get me wrong, there are indeed some foot-stomping tunes on here, but the majority of the songs show the maturity of the band in their writing style. The album opens with the bass heavy "Clogger" that will remind fans of earlier albums, but as you go further into the album the sound definately changes. "Wayfaring Stranger" is sparse with the majority of the music hidden in a drone of sounds. The most powerful song is "Cinder Alley," with itssoft violin introduction, exploding chorus and passionate lyrics. "Burning Bush" focuses on the beautiful vocals of David Eugene Edwards, and the inclusion a new instrument for the band, the piano. "Just Like Birds" features, again, the violin and if you listen closely you can hear David's daughter, Asher, humming the opening melody. One of the treasures of this album is the inclusion of their Bob Dylan cover "Nobody 'Cept You," which they truly make their own. What makes Sixteen Horsepower special is their highly personal lyrics that range from love, to religious struggling and acceptance, to basic life experience. How they blend these with the original sound of old-time instruments and modern rock create a unique listening experience that draws you in and just won't let you go!

I'd been a fan of 16 Horsepower for a couple of years and had seen them a few times. Their CD release show in Denver did not prepare me for the power and depth of the album. I saw them play in a record store, a three song acoustic set, the night the CD was released. That little gig held some of the power and intensity of the CD, but again, I was not prepared for the depth. This disk has been in my changer for months now. Every time it comes up, I think "I really should switch that out," but every time I leave it in, and every time, I enjoy it. It is a rare treat to find music this durable. Incidentally, country-phobia is not an excuse. My tastes lean very much to the trance/trip hop and I really dig this.

I stumbled upon the band quite by accident about four years ago. it was late one night and I was coming back from I someplace I can't remember when "Clogger" came on the radio of a local college station. I liked the song a great deal and heard "Heel on the Shovel" I think a few days later, but couldn't remember the band's name. Several years later I did, and I have been enthralled with the music ever since. I'm not a country fan and I certainly don't consider myself a christian music fan, but it's not about that. It's about the internal struggle, and Edwards draws you into the thick of it. The music takes you into strange land, and if you're comfortable then you're not listening hard enough. This is a more streamlined album than the previous two, but at the same time it's definitely a worthy successor. It's the same aural landscape, it's just a slightly different approach. This album is more accessible due to tracks like "Clogger", "Cinder Alley", and "Praying Arm Lane". "Strawfoot" and "Wayfaring Stranger" are undeniable foot tappers. None of the songs are poor in my reckoning, but to each his own. I consider this work, like all their material to be very important musically- definitely one of the best buys I've made in a long time.

Friends of mine turned me on to this band a few years back. I keep thanking them for their generosity.

16 HP's latest epic lacks some of the interesting flourishes from their earlier albums, such as the concertina. With any other band that could be dangerous. Not this band. Vocalist David Eugene Edwards still comes across like he's charming the snakes from the hills, setting the album afire with his views of heaven and hell. By the third listen the entire set sinks in and that's it, you will be throwing this offering on the player almost every day. It's that intriguing.

Take it from someone who normally runs from country to embrace a Nine Inch Nails CD. This harmonious album surpasses all musical boundaries and ultimately conquers them all. 16 HP delivers haunting, soul-driven music for folks bored with the mundane drivel set before the masses. 16HP is the real deal, kids.

It is sad that this sound has been strictly located w/in Denver for so many years (that is, of course excluding its tremendous success in Europe). Although it is this reviewers opinion that the southern gothic attitude in music developed in Denver, it is also this reviewers opinion that it has not recieved enough attention outside colorado. So if you are a non-Colorado resident buy every 16 Horsepower CD you can and realize why the best musicians in America are Developing in the heart of the midwest. Secret South is truly amazing & if you find you can swallow the South David Eugene Edwards gives you, then check out these other Denver artists & see exactly what I am talking about.
The artists are:
Slim Cessna's Auto Club
Munly (who also plays W/the Auto Club)
The Denver Gentlemen (wow)
The Kalamath Brothers
Preacher Boy
Woven Hand (solo project by David Eugene Edwards)
thankyou
(d.)

I just got this disc today and it's all I have played since. It has gotten under my skin and I can't get it out. It's like those early songs of the the Band mixed with with R.E.M.'s "Murmer", somethings going on that I just can't put my finger to. Oh well, I guess it's back to playing it again.

Being from Denver and all, I really should have seen this group more than once. But I'll admit to being late jumping on this bandwagon (no pun intended). It's hard to believe that these guys can't walk the streets in Holland without being bum-rushed while they are virtually faceless in Denver.

David Eugene Edwards' lyrics captivate listeners with a yin and yang of his own twist of spirituality (being a preacher's son and all) and utter despair. Lyrics haunt the listener, and the back-porch bayou music complements them perfectly.

I prefer this album to their other studio releases as it has more depth and variety and expands into new directions. Song-writing is still great as with other 16HP albums but they take it a bit further. Perhaps more artistic freedom with the new label was a contributing factor.

All in all, a great album and worth the gilders you pay for it. Your cd player will glad you did.

16 Horsepower just keep getting better and better. Sackcloth & Ashes is great, Secret South is brilliant. Whenever I hear 16HP it brings 'Deliverence' to mind....scarey huh.

...but this music makes me experience something 'greater', if this makes any sense at all. I guess what I mean to say is that some people are put off by the obvious religious undertones but by labelling it as 'christian rock' there completely missing the mark here. I too at first listen was a bit put off by this but by allowing it to grow on me it eventually struck a large chord and been a fan for many years now, it began with this mesmerizing masterpiece and is continuing with Woven Hand. I always recommend this album to friends who want to listen something completely different and hauntingly beautifull altogether.