American Stories is not the expected output of Buffalo, NY's punk and indie rock heavies Tim Nixon and Jesse Rejewski (Sleepy Sparrows, Dr. Dirty Sanchez), but that said, it is a pleasant sort of unexpected. Their new release, Prelude shows diverse song writing mixed mith lyrics of life and loss.
If we were to follow the liner notes on this, American Stories is "americana", but this label misses a lot of what their music actually has to offer. There are still elements of punk rock and just the hint of the Emocore songs of the late 90's and early 2000's. The songs are well crafted melodies put to the words of a musician observing his own life from an outside perspective.
This album was recorded with a good deal of care towards striking a balance between guitars, bass, drums, and vocals. The sound itself is blended excellently, and the songs leave a listener yearning for something a little bit better than their day to day, humdrum life.
There is some americana on this album, next to the more punk-esque songs, with tracks like "War Profiteers" and "Day Jobs and Sunsets". Standing next to these country tinted songs though are stand outs "Halfmast", "Forgetting the Clock", and "Happy New Years". These are nice combinations of the upbeat melody juxtaposed with lyrics of loss without redemption (hey...just like real life).
When all is said and done, we need to hope Tim and Jesse will continue to put more American Stories out soon.
N.B. special thanks to Scott Howard for letting me know about these guysWhere to find them:
At the moment it's pay what you want...which makes it only fair to pay at least something.
RIYL: Sledding with Tigers, Paul Westerberg, Sinners, Repent!
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