Verskotzi - Lemon Heart (Princess Records)
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| Verskotzi - Lemon Heart |
Minneapolis boy Joey Verskotzi
and his band cite the likes of Bob Dylan, Thom Yorke and Wilco in their
influences and instantly I'm interested in what they've got to say. It's a lot
to live up to though. The album, 'Lemon Heart', opens with 'Luck', something of
a chugging, slow burner of a song with a subtle thrum and instantly Joey's smooth vocals hook you in to the tune in a way
that Brandon Flowers has perfected over the years. The spaced out Flaming Lips
style indie of 'Brain Rack' is a wondrous thing whereas 'Heartless Songs' has a
more Fun Lovin' Criminals feel as the bass lurks in the shadows and the guitars
swing casually from woman to woman in a seedy bar. As '8th Train Station' comes
around, Verskotzi are in full stride
taking some excellent song craftsmenship and adding in a real sense of Rock-Pop
bravado the likes of which would expect from the Killers or U2.
I love a good song title that
peaks the interest and 'Burnt Yuppies' is a great one, that's for sure. The
song itself is just over a minute of gentle acoustic picking with tender vocals
and subdued, tired vocal harmonies. On 'Honey' the Wilco/Radiohead shuffle is
immediately recognisable as Joey's smooth voice weaves it's magic throughout
the strummed guitar and pitter-patter rhythms before 'Blue' creeps in quietly
to sing you a lullaby as a sand storm rages outside in the dustbowl. These guys
really know how to put a song together and the big drum stomp that introduces
'The Flying Piano' is a real statement of intent - the intent being that these
guys want to have some fun in front of a big, pumped up crowd sometime this
summer. With the end rapidly approaching, the band take their foot off the gas
momentarily to introduce 'Abandoned Love (feat. Zoo Animal)' which is
atmospheric, awkward and proudly displaying the Radiohead fan badge. The album
closes with 'Diamond Ring' which is the kind of piano based rousing ballad that
Keane are desperate to write but can't remember how to. I'm not really sure
what the future holds for Verskotzi as they sound pretty polished and they have
a couple of big tunes so I guess they just need to gig, gig and gig again until
the world has no option but to pay attention.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/verskotzimusic?fref=ts
Listen Download: http://verskotzi.bandcamp.com/
Live Dates:
18th June - Gas Lamp, Des Moines
19th June - Mulligan's, Grand Rapids
20th June - Lemmons, St Louis