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Oakhurst:
Greenhorn
Greenhorn is a rowdy barrage of jam rock from Denver-based Oakhurst, a band that walks a fine line between traditional bluegrass and modern alt-country. With some excellent playing and a fiery lead singer, they are the bluegrass equivalent of The Replacements at their most carefree (a la Garys Got a Boner). Seven songs constitute this sophomore effort, which features a live-sounding production, suiting to the bands tendency for rollicking up-tempo numbers and roadhouse vibe. Songs like Leslies and Sweet Carolina bristle with a toe-tapping, down-home country vibe and before you know it, you find yourself smiling at the catchy choruses and marveling at the solo breaks. Theyve been called a jam band, but really, theres only one extended instrumental here (Circles) and it calls to mind Dave Matthews Bands Kit-Kat Jam (for all you indie fans familiar with Busted Stuff wink, wink), but whereas the latter doesnt really go anywhere, the former changes tempo mid-number and adds dimension to an already-interesting piece. Unfortunately, theres a sense of sameness to the album that begins to wear by the time Four-Twenty comes around, the bands ode to marijuana and its weakest offering. It would actually make a great song if the band played more to its melancholic intro (theres a C.C.R. song in there somewhere), but it becomes borderline schlock with a rambunctious chorus thats pretty lame. It would have made a nice down-tempo number, and at the same time added variety (and depth) to the album. This is not your mothers O Brother, Where Art Thou?-lovin bluegrass, but while Oakhurst most surely brings the rock, theres probably too much old-timey traditionalism and country-stylings to win over mainstream music fans. (But if their audience isnt MTV, is that really so bad?) There are moments here that suggest an urge to cross over, as with the minor key lines of Sweet Carolina or electric guitar flourishes of final jam, Circles, but whether theyll actually achieve this remains to be seen. One things for certain: if the band continues with their brand of porch music, it would hardly be a loss. People who find their records should be pleased.
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