Also in this Issue
- In the Mood for Doom The Original Mark Edwards in his basement of lonely loops (Music)
- Broken Girls Two grooves from bedroom troubadours (Music)
- Mel Gibson & the Pants: Sea vs. Shining Sea (CD Review)
- Rivulets: You Are My Home (CD Review)
- More articles from this issue...
More CD Review Articles
- Yoko Ono: Yes, I'm A Witch (Feb 7, 2007)
- Various artists: Hyphy Hitz (Jan 31, 2007)
- Mouthful of Bees: The End (Jan 31, 2007)
- Various artists: The Mixed Up Tape, Vol. 1 (Jan 24, 2007)
- The Deaf: This Bunny Bites (Jan 24, 2007)
- Over/Under: Line Out (Jan 24, 2007)
- Ela: Real Blood on Fake Trees (Jan 17, 2007)
- Tall Firs: Tall Firs (Jan 10, 2007)
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Trampled by Turtles: Trouble
Trampled by Turtles
Trouble
Banjodad Records
With an audience big enough to fill First Avenue twice-over this weekend, and a 2006 live CD that I play for pleasure more than Chooglin' or P.O.S., Trampled by Turtles are major Minnesota artists by any standard that matters in my household. So is Trouble a major work of Minnesota art? Not quite. Deepening an idea that clicked in many people's minds the moment Peter Buck's mandolin kicked in on the Replacements' "I Will Dare" 23 years ago, TBT's third album of post-bluegrass feels immense enough, no small thanks to production by Rich Mattson (of Ol' Yeller), Dave Gardner's mastering, and guest fiddling by Jessy Greene—plus Retribution Gospel Choir's Eric Pollard stopping by to drum (!) here and there. Such scenester votes of confidence aside, however, Dave Simonett is a better singer than he apparently gives himself credit for, at least judging by the way he embeds his vocals in the blurry harmonies of his fellows on banjo, bass, and mandolin.
In concert and at a glance, the man is barely distinguishable, seated among the three other male off-blonds, wearing two or three beards between them. But Simonett is nonetheless the most compelling frontman Duluth has produced in years. His flow has a shit-kicking quality no folkie can assume, a frank way of phrasing that makes his melodies a blunt instrument amid impressionist strumming. But he takes comfort in lyrical clichés ("There's peace in the valley," "go tell it on the mountain," etc.) and seems to recognize there's a problem: "I'll never write another song again," he blurts on "Never Again," sounding suddenly authoritative, "'cause they all sound the same and I should be ashamed." Then he opens the next song, "Trouble," with one of his best, most plausibly Minnesotan lines: "It's cold enough to kill/But you're so near that I can hear you breathing." That tune's title chorus oddly resembles Low's recent slow rocking, as does "Who's Calling?" two tracks later. But these guys would do well to get hotter, not colder, in the spotlight.
About Peter S. Scholtes
From the Archive
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- Local Music Yearbook '06 Prince went to Vegas. Smokers went to Maplewood. Tapes 'N Tapes went to the moon. And sometime after the last zombie dance party got busted, we wrote it all down for you. (Cover Story - Dec 20, 2006)
- Enter Sandman Why Neil Gaiman is about to become bigger than death (Cover Story - Nov 29, 2006)
- The Shelf Life of Socialism Inside a Leninist bookstore in West St. Paul, a familiar refrain: What is to be done? (Cover Story - Nov 29, 2006)
- Reggaetón Animal Immigrant dreams, dirty dancing, and the revolution: Meet the new Latin hip hop of Maria Isa and Danny y Elliot (Cover Story - Nov 22, 2006)
- Who is Mick Jones? The Clash and Carbon/Silicon guitarist talks about life after Joe (Music - Nov 8, 2006)
- Talk Hardcore to Me Doc-making punks discuss their decline of Midwestern civ (Film - Oct 18, 2006)
- Various Artists: Life of Monotony: Six Bands from Minneapolis (CD Review - Oct 11, 2006)
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