Remember the days when bands were not afraid to sound unique. When you could buy an album and it would sound nothing like the last album you bought. Okay so this album harkens to many 60s sounds and begs to resurrect papa Lennon; but Sean Ono and Charlotte Kemp provide enough originality to make you feel like you found something new and refreshing. There is tons of ear candy and catchy hooks in this to make you want to listen with headphones over and over. I look forward to seeing them return to Austin.
The Bluebird Specials like to keep things musically pure and recording this in Wild Bill's living room with an old school Peavey PA has managed to keep the essence of their live sound in this recording. The magic of this trio is that they spend much of their time together which has allowed them to dial in some incredible harmonies. With a bass, acoustic guitar, and mandolin, these ladies seem to keep the air full of music. The variety of songs take you through a roller coaster of life experiences. Out of the gate, Lost Boy is a dramatic start to what can be called a tipsy whimsical journey peering into a window of their lives. The Bluebird Specials are some of the hardest working musicians I have meet in the Austin music scene. This is an excellent start for anyone who wants to get to know them... musically that is.
Jack White's record label, Third Man Records, is branching out in all directions. Adding to his product line is the Bumble Buzz effects pedal. I wouldn't call it a guitar pedal because his demo video has a bass guitar and a fiddle running through it. This pedal is heavy in fuzz and clip. There are no knobs to adjust so it is truly a one trick pony. The name is true to its tone as it has a buzz type fuzz with a slight warmth. it is then heavily gated to cut the hum and feedback that is not necessarily desired. the gating almost gives a stutter effect which adds to the "Jack White"-ness. There is also a harmonic effect that limits the output to two maybe three strings of the guitar. I have found running an overdrive or EQ pedal after this adds new tone features to the sound output that can help control frequencies and eliminate some unwanted overtones. I don't mind listening to this pedal straight into an amp as it has an amazing amount of character, and sits nicely in a mix of bass and drums.
(The standard model is black. To get the yellow version of the pedal you have to become a Vault Member)
