Dew Barf – Old School Rules
Dew Barf - Old School Rules
Release Date: Out Now
If you ever see two scruffy, bearded
blokes sat in the corner of a Cornish pub with a couple of guitars and half a drumkit
then the chances are it’s the prolific jam duo Dew Barf and you’ll be in for a
right treat. You see, Dew Barf (literally translated from Cornish it means Two
Beards) are the stuff of legend and always guarantee a great night of
entertainment so it is particularly exciting to receive this, their debut album.
‘Old School Rules’ opens up with the old Appalachian folk ditty ‘Cripple Creek’
which sounds like Ray Davies jamming with Seasick Steve and that really sets
the scene for the whole album. Up next is ‘Five Star Fuckin’ Around’ which
takes the blues back to it’s roots with a stomping rhythm section and excellent
finger work on the neck of a beaten guitar.
There’s no doubting the technical
ability of these two gents but it’s the fact that they blend it with such
excellent feel and natural groove that makes this such a listenable band. ‘Generation
X’ is the perfect example of this as Queen-esque bass line is matched by the sublime
picking on the acoustic guitar. The superb folk-rock stomp of ‘Richard Shipsey’
is the kind of bone rattling genius that draws unsuspecting strangers to dark
corners of pubs and, wonderfully, is apparently named after the guy that taught
axeman Andy Boddington these riffs back in the day. This is followed by a brace
of covers (namely T Rex’s ‘Get It On’ and Led Zeppelin’s ‘Kashmir’) which have
their own Dew Barf stamp on them without ever losing the energy and zest of the
originals.
‘Long Monday’ is an altogether
calmer affair as the pair take on the Americana of John Prine before Golden Earring’s
‘Radar Love’ rattles into life coming over the horizon all snarling engines and
glaring headlights. What follows this is a live favourite that has made grown
men cry, grannies dance with teenagers and clubbers lose their shit to a couple
of old guys with guitars. This is an epic 15-minute version of the Faithless
classic ‘Insomnia’ and it is immense. The guitars go through some sort of metamorphosis
from frantic strumming and Flamenco style flicks to finding that groove and
that oh so famous melody. ‘Gotcha!’ is up next and opens with a morse code
message and a slightly evil laugh before settling in to a nice 70s cop show
theme with funky guitars and a bubbling bass line,
After a brief and brilliantly
inexplicable pause for the ‘College Hornpipe’, we are given another brace of versions
with Talking Heads’ ‘Psycho Killer’ and Aerosmith’s ‘Walk This Way’ getting the
blues folk treatment with aplomb. ‘In The Pub’ is skiffle meets Chas’n’Dave in
the most brilliant way and then the album closes out with ‘Billy in the
Lowground’ – a Tony Rice track which dispels any doubts you had about the
playing abilities of these two reprobates. The album was recorded in around 6
hours with minimal set up and that live energy really comes through which is
lucky because it’s that energy that makes Dew Barf so special. I’m not sure
anything will ever match the pure joy of seeing these two hold an audience in
the palm of their hand but this album comes darn close so if you can’t get to a
gig then 2nd best will have to do.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/dewbarf/
Live Dates:
10th January – Queens Arms, Torpoint
11th January – Old School, Pelynt
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