To say Centro-matic is a southern rock band would be the biggest mistake you could ever make, yet so many people make it. When you say “Southern rock” I think of old guys in black denim playing Skynyrd songs in a place called “The Greased Pig” or “The Hitchin’ Post” and that couldn’t be further from what Centro-matic and South San Gabriel are. True, Will Johnson has a southern accent, this is because he’s from the south, not because he only knows 4 chords and likes metaphor’s about whiskey.
Imagine Dinosaur JR with a masterful sense of melody mixed with Golden-era Tom Petty with more balls and you’re getting closer. Imagine “the best live band in the world” being a band who just plays with a ferocious intensity and skill instead of a memorable gimmick. Now you have Centro-matic and their more orchestral folk co-outfit South San Gabriel. In the era of Indie disco bands who get called “amazing live!” for wearing ironic costumes and having lots of people on stage, Centro-matic is messiah to those who just want to hear amazing music without their intelligence being insulted.
The album opens with Rat Patrol & DJ’s, an easy single which could sell just about anything with ease and quickly shifts gear into the harmony-laden downtempo sing along that is Two Seats Gold Reserved. A few tracks later you’re back into blistering sing-alongs with Strychnine, Breathless Ways thundering along firmly into the realms of your subconscious with a focused intensity that’s hard to describe with nouns and adjectives. Next thing you know you’re in the countrified masterpiece that is Twenty-Four, a song about the good old days, which sounds like Petty & The Heartbreakers at their most fearless. Wow, that was quite a ride, there isn’t a single bad song on this record.
What’s that? There’s another entire disc? Yes, please. If you can listen to Emma Jane, the opening song of disc 2 without coming close to tears you’re a cold and lifeless robot. Will Johnson’s voice is a instrument all on it’s own, and it’s never sounded so beautiful as it does when surrounded by a thick layer of doleful violin, and a gently plodding guitar line. Don’t worry though, it’s not a boring folk record, Trust To Lose get’s all far-eastern on you, while The Arc & The Cusp is a brief foray into electronic folk, & From This I Will Awake is sort of what Phosphorescent wish they could sound like.
If I can suggest one record for you to buy this Summer, it’s this, and it’s available now on CD, LP, & Digital. Buy it!
[mp3] Centro-matic – Rat Patrol & Dj’s
[mp3] South San Gabriel – Emma Jane Centro-matic is on tour, see the dates here.
Our favorite Texans, Centro-matic, and their slightly larger, slightly more orchestral, and slightly more sensitive alter-ego South San Gabriel will hit the road for a few dates on the East Coast and Southeast. Besides being wonderful news for me, this is wonderful news for any of you in the cities below. Seriously, you better be there.
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