CD REVIEWS
By Michael Swanger scenescribe@mchsi.com
A.A. Bondy
“When the Devil’s Loose”
Fat Possum Records
Understated folk-rock singer A.A. Bondy’s stripped down second album full of languid ballads isn’t typical of what we’ve come to expect from Fat Possum Records (R.L. Burnside, The Black Keys). Then again, Fat Possum isn’t your typical record label and Bondy isn’t your typical singer-songwriter, in that on a song like “A Slow Parade” he can turn an otherwise plaintive ballad from a whisper to a scream mid-song without missing a beat. Bondy’s craggy voice perfectly matches the sparse instrumentation and mournful atmosphere of the 10 original songs found on the low drag of “When the Devil’s Loose.” He is at his best on the lonely twang of “Oh the Vampyre,” the spacious lullaby “On The Moon,” the Stax spook of “To The Morning” and the ethereal title track. CV
(A.A. Bondy performs Saturday, Jan. 30 at 9 p.m. at the M-Shop in Ames. $10.)
Corey Smith
“Keeping Up With the Joneses”
Undertone Records
Independent artist Corey Smith has already made a splash with his latest album, “Keeping Up With the Joneses,” which two months ago reached No. 1 on the iTunes Singer/Songwriter Album Chart ahead of more established artists like James Taylor, Brett Dennen and Amos Lee. So how does an independent artist with no record label (Undertone is his own) and no radio play do it? Just listen to the honesty of his music, which has been described as a “Southern-fried Jack Johnson, or maybe Dave Matthews with a country-music jones.” Truth be told, he manages to come off as being sincere with a universal resonance whether he’s singing an acoustic ballad (“Sweet Sorrow”), a country-tinged rock song (“Dirtier by the Year”), a joyful blues (“Feels Like Love”) or straight-ahead rock (“Powerful Feeling”). And that goes a long ways with listeners. CV
(Corey Smith plays Thursday, Jan. 28 at 8 p.m. at People’s Court. $10.)
