Published on Aug 14, 2001
So few bands these days take any chances musically, especially
when they hit the major labels. It’s almost as if while some groups
are independent, they feel free to experiment with songs that
reflect so many different stylistic influences, but the moment they
get locked into the big record deal, their creativity is locked up
tight.
With that in mind, I have this simple message for Johnson
Brothers – and I can’t emphasize this enough, even if I were to set
this in the largest type possible in HTML:
Don’t EVER lose your creative spirit
. Even if it means passing up the chance to be on a major
label, rally against the suits and their “musical herd” mentality.
If their second album
Quintessential Honey is a sign of what this band is capable
of, then I’m more excited than a 10-year-old kid downloading nude
pictures of Anna Nicole Smith.
Lead vocalist Aaron Pickering (who also handles some percussion
and keyboards) and crew have a real innocence about them. Their
musical vision hasn’t been deflowered by slick-talking shysters who
claim they know what’s best for the band, when they themselves
couldn’t find a clue with a road map. They haven’t been compromised
by A&R people at labels who care less about musical purity than
about how they can get an album certified as a Diamond-seller. This
is
music
, pure and simple. This is reminiscent of what got people like
me interested in making some kind of career based around music.
This, kids, is what is quite possibly the rarest element in the
whole music industry: honesty.
Boy, the reader is thinking, he’s laying it on thick today.
Well, wouldn’t you if you heard a group who could mix the funkiness
of Earth, Wind & Fire with the alternative sense of King’s X
and even a little bit of Steely Dan thrown in at times? Oh – and
let’s not forget that Johnson Brothers is able to accomplish all
this while creating a unique sound for themselves. The opening trio
of songs – “Out Of Tune,” “Music & Mind” and “Quintessential
Honey” – show that this sextet has absolute mastery of their
musical style, and will make believers out of anyone who comes
along.
But to call these guys a funk group or retro-’70s would be
incorrect. “Visions Of You” is a tender, stripped-down track which
makes good use of Curtis Roberts’s bass. (For that matter, all of
the instrumentation comes through the mix crisply without losing
any of the nuances – well done!) Other tracks, like “L.A. Song” and
“My Combustible Skin,” find Johnson Brothers plowing their own path
in album rock without relying too heavily on any one influence.
Oh, this isn’t to say that
Quintessential Honey is without any flaws. “Seven” is a
track that confuses me – one minute’s worth of a chorus? A song
idea that never got fleshed out? The band fooling around on a riff?
All it tends to do is break the momentum a little bit – and while
the following track “Something Simple” has some beautiful moments,
the band isn’t able to get that momentum back. (I’d have utilized
some harmony vocals on this one’s chorus; guitarist/keyboardist
Doug Beale proves earlier this group can do some great
harmonies.)
Still, even when Johnson Brothers stumble, I’d rather hear them
take that chance and miss the bullseye than become a cookie-cutter
group. “Highest” is kind of like that, a song that works at getting
back on track and partially succeeds, but doesn’t quite live up to
the excellence that makes up the bulk of
Quintessential Honey. “Right Here Now” does succeed in
taking a chance, following a different rhythm pattern and putting
their fate in the hands of bassist Roberts and drummer Matt
Fielding. It’s almost Toad The Wet Sprocket-like at times, and
turns out to be a pretty powerful track. The album’s closer “Aloha”
seals the deal for me, making me want to dive for the stereo and
hit the “play” button on the CD player again.
Quintessential Honey is the kind of disc that reaffirms my
faith in the music industry, and suggests that Johnson Brothers, as
long as they’re given the freedom to develop their music as they
see fit, are going to be huge. These guys are worth watching for…
and I’ll be keeping my eyes and ears focused on them.