The Outlaw Orchestra – La Familia
The Outlaw Orchestra, those three-piece purveyors of "heavygrass," rock and country, have taken both a step up and added a rockier edge to their sound on third studio album La Familia.
The slightly heavier sound is due, in part, to the input of producer Alessio Garavello.
Singer (A New Tomorrow)/ producer/ engineer Garavello has however ensured the subtleties of this highly individualistic band – Dave Roux (lead vocals, guitars), multi-instrumentalist Pete Briley, Ryan Smith (drums, percussion) – remain; which is as musically important as the volume of the amps.
And then there’s the album’s title, which points to the camaraderie of all those who embrace and support live music, from the fans and venue owners to the bands and their teams of helpers. All are as important to The Outlaw Orchestra as the music they play.
The album kicks off in mighty fine Outlaw Orchestra fashion with 'Rotten Apples,' where heavygrass hoedown and a rattlin' beat meets riff-driven country boogie, all accompanied by a story about black sheep of the family and a warning to never pick "low hanging fruit."
That the lyric also includes references to Sir Isaac Newton ("watch where you’re going boys, you bumped me on the head!") and the line "not sweet enough for apple pie, we ended up in cider" (Carry On up the Apple Tree anyone?) just adds to the brazen, fun cheekiness of the song (and indeed the band).
The rockier 'S.O.S.' (intro’d and interjected with a decidedly Aerosmith/ Joe Perry riff) stands, in this case, for Save Our Souls, as the old rockers never die styled lyric underlines ("they can’t save our souls above the noise of our rock 'n' roll, with our loud guitars nobody hears the toll").
Doubling as a homage to contemporary southern and classic rock, you’ll also hear nods to earlier greats such as, in the closing stanzas, the Allmans.
Banjo-folk meets chain gang number 'Fear The Bite' provides slow and dark contrast before the rock quotient is once again raised (as is a glass or five, and some Hell) by the boisterous 'El Dorado,' where power chords, banjo-picking and a huge chorus combine to create one of the best songs on the album.
The brooding, swaying and swampy rock blues of 'Holy Ground' is another winner, bolstered by a second half that lifts to an instrumental outro that's not so much southern fried rock as southern fried metal.
The slightly heavier sound is due, in part, to the input of producer Alessio Garavello.
Singer (A New Tomorrow)/ producer/ engineer Garavello has however ensured the subtleties of this highly individualistic band – Dave Roux (lead vocals, guitars), multi-instrumentalist Pete Briley, Ryan Smith (drums, percussion) – remain; which is as musically important as the volume of the amps.
And then there’s the album’s title, which points to the camaraderie of all those who embrace and support live music, from the fans and venue owners to the bands and their teams of helpers. All are as important to The Outlaw Orchestra as the music they play.
The album kicks off in mighty fine Outlaw Orchestra fashion with 'Rotten Apples,' where heavygrass hoedown and a rattlin' beat meets riff-driven country boogie, all accompanied by a story about black sheep of the family and a warning to never pick "low hanging fruit."
That the lyric also includes references to Sir Isaac Newton ("watch where you’re going boys, you bumped me on the head!") and the line "not sweet enough for apple pie, we ended up in cider" (Carry On up the Apple Tree anyone?) just adds to the brazen, fun cheekiness of the song (and indeed the band).
The rockier 'S.O.S.' (intro’d and interjected with a decidedly Aerosmith/ Joe Perry riff) stands, in this case, for Save Our Souls, as the old rockers never die styled lyric underlines ("they can’t save our souls above the noise of our rock 'n' roll, with our loud guitars nobody hears the toll").
Doubling as a homage to contemporary southern and classic rock, you’ll also hear nods to earlier greats such as, in the closing stanzas, the Allmans.
Banjo-folk meets chain gang number 'Fear The Bite' provides slow and dark contrast before the rock quotient is once again raised (as is a glass or five, and some Hell) by the boisterous 'El Dorado,' where power chords, banjo-picking and a huge chorus combine to create one of the best songs on the album.
The brooding, swaying and swampy rock blues of 'Holy Ground' is another winner, bolstered by a second half that lifts to an instrumental outro that's not so much southern fried rock as southern fried metal.
Sitting dead centre of the album is the short but effective bluesy stomp of 'Small Change,' where the all too familiar story of how luck now outweighs talent is lyrically reinforced ("been playing these joints for a lifetime, in the flip of a coin gonna make it a gold mine").
'Sunday Drivers' is a boundary pushing departure for The Outlaw Orchestra.
A woozy, rhythmic (nice percussion work here from Ryan Smith) and reflective "when we were young" blues, 'Sunday Drivers' features some nicely dovetailing guitar remarks (shades of Santana and early Fleetwood Mac here) that play in sympathy to the song's vibe and lyric.
The southern and Allmans-y 'Bag Of Bones' lyrically stems from a true story that Dave Roux has restyled as a lyrical tale of one man and his "best friend on the end of this lead," who both come to realise there’s (always) someone else more in need of a bag of bones.
It might not be the strongest song on the album musically, but you can’t argue with the sentiment or empathy of the lyric.
The banjo backed, mid-tempo stomp of 'Born To Be a Thief' delivers tried & tested 'if it wasn’t for bad luck' lyricism ("doesn’t matter how you roll the dice, it’s still the same old luck every night") before the band get their slow blues on, Outlaw style, for the cleverly title twisted 'Graceless Time.'
The latter, while delivered with a musical sensitivity, is another to carry deliciously wicked lyricism ("we’ve laughed in life’s changing face, we’ve found a timeless grace… and this rope it won’t break, I’m still the shining noose in your tree, a reminder of what I used to be").
The album closes out on southern rock 'n' roll barnstormer 'Outlaw,' a song destined to become the band’s calling card and a guaranteed, stone cold winner live.
" 'Cause I’m an outlaw, I’m an outlaw, you’re one too!" holler the band in full chorus cry.
Yes indeed; we’re all part of La Outlaw Familia, amigos.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ
'Sunday Drivers' is a boundary pushing departure for The Outlaw Orchestra.
A woozy, rhythmic (nice percussion work here from Ryan Smith) and reflective "when we were young" blues, 'Sunday Drivers' features some nicely dovetailing guitar remarks (shades of Santana and early Fleetwood Mac here) that play in sympathy to the song's vibe and lyric.
The southern and Allmans-y 'Bag Of Bones' lyrically stems from a true story that Dave Roux has restyled as a lyrical tale of one man and his "best friend on the end of this lead," who both come to realise there’s (always) someone else more in need of a bag of bones.
It might not be the strongest song on the album musically, but you can’t argue with the sentiment or empathy of the lyric.
The banjo backed, mid-tempo stomp of 'Born To Be a Thief' delivers tried & tested 'if it wasn’t for bad luck' lyricism ("doesn’t matter how you roll the dice, it’s still the same old luck every night") before the band get their slow blues on, Outlaw style, for the cleverly title twisted 'Graceless Time.'
The latter, while delivered with a musical sensitivity, is another to carry deliciously wicked lyricism ("we’ve laughed in life’s changing face, we’ve found a timeless grace… and this rope it won’t break, I’m still the shining noose in your tree, a reminder of what I used to be").
The album closes out on southern rock 'n' roll barnstormer 'Outlaw,' a song destined to become the band’s calling card and a guaranteed, stone cold winner live.
" 'Cause I’m an outlaw, I’m an outlaw, you’re one too!" holler the band in full chorus cry.
Yes indeed; we’re all part of La Outlaw Familia, amigos.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ