05.23.19

PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS
•INTO THE NIGHT•
BY BLISS BOWEN
Talbott Brothers
TRAX BY BLISS
MAVIS STAPLES, We Get By (Anti): HHHH½
Among Staples’ most potent, cohesive albums,
these 11 songs were composed and produced by
Ben Harper, an insightfully inspired musical partner.
Backed with formidable finesse by longtime guitarist/
bandleader Rick Holmstrom, drummer Stephen
Hodges and bassist Jeff Turmes, the hard-touring
gospel/soul icon is in tremendous form, addressing
darkness she’s rallied against for six decades in the
unusually intimate “Heavy on My Mind”; that and
the mortality-acknowledging “Hard to Leave” add
grounded dimension to surrounding calls for justice
she robustly voices like “Brothers and Sisters,”
“Stronger” and “Change.” In today’s American chaos,
this is the determined, spirit-boosting music and
message — and voice — we need. mavisstaples.com
Keeping It
in the Family
THE MORNING YELLS, On the Lash (Golden
Boy): HHHH
Shimmering with harmonies and buoyant hooks,
the Westside quartet evokes the 1960s-’70s heyday
of Laurel Canyon pop and the Mamas & the Papas,
while remaining true to its own time. Anchored
by frontman/songwriter Phil Stancil and guitarist
sister Laura (whose winning vocal on the countryhazed
“Off the Rails” calls for more of same), the
Yells deliver psychedelic-dipped pop treats like “Oh
My My” and the dreamy “Half Speak” that remind
just how refreshing sturdy melodies can be. RIYL
Beachwood Sparks, GospelbeacH, and driving up
PCH with windows down. themorningyells.com
PORTLAND’S TALBOTT BROTHERS BRING SIBLING HARMONIES AND HEARTFELT
STORYTELLING TO WINE & SONG IN SOUTH PASADENA WEDNESDAY NIGHT
“T
here’s only a few
things that a man like
me needs,” the Talbott
Brothers sing in sly, inviting harmony
on their song “Hey Honey.”
“Jesus, whiskey, and you right
next to me.”
One other thing they need:
music. Lots of it, preferably
homemade. “Hey Honey” is from
the Talbott Brothers’ warmly received
third album, “Gray,” which
has kept them on the road since
its release in 2017.
Their backstory resembles
that of many an Americana
and folk band: Growing up,
small town Nebraska natives
Nick and Tyler Talbott taught
themselves to play along with
Johnny Cash and the Beatles
on a dreadnought guitar that
belonged to their father, who had
played in an Eagles cover band.
The personable duo found their
groove with the clean-shaven
Tyler’s muscular baritone taking
the vocal lead while playing
rhythm guitar alongside bearded
older brother Nick’s more complex
fretwork. Eventually they
took their acoustic act public
at church and coffeehouses,
which opened doors to bars and
nightclubs; a few years ago, they
followed their muse to Portland,
Oregon, where they currently
reside. Fast forward to the present,
and they’ve added mandolin
and harmonica to their gig bags,
while their tour itinerary also
includes wineries, February’s
Key West-bound Rock Boat
cruise, and Wine & Song in South
Pasadena this Wednesday.
More or less on schedule with
their biannual release schedule
— “Gray” was preceded by 2015’s
“Places” and 2013’s “The Road” —
the Talbotts recently returned to
the studio to work on their next
album. Wednesday’s sets will
hopefully include one or two new
songs like the yearning “Without
a Doubt,” sung in the voice of
a man conflicted by yearning
and regret, along with dynamic
standouts from “Gray” such as
the blues-tinged “Dead Man Pass”
and “Traveler,” an open-hearted
view of troubadour life: “Out
here on the road/ So many men
with talent, but only few have
the soul/ … Maybe I’m no better
than the man who pays a dollar
for a fix/ And maybe I’m no
different than the ones who are
running all of this.”
Their storytelling is grounded
and scaled to life, and the flowing
warmth of their music connects
on a visceral level. It’s reductive
to compare them to anyone else
because the Talbott Brothers
have put in enough hours and
miles to forge their own musical
identity. But if you like, say, the
Lumineers, the Steel Wheels,
and/or Ray LaMontagne, or if you
just savor acoustic intimacy, you
could do far worse than heading
to South Pasadena Wednesday
night. n
Wine & Song hosts the Talbott Brothers
at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 29, at Arroyo
Seco Golf Course, 1055 Lohman Lane,
South Pasadena; $20/$14. Sofia Talvik is
also a featured artist. thetalbottbrothers.
com, wineandsong.com
SINKANE, Dépaysé (City Slang): HHH
“I’m singing for the day we realize that we all relate,”
Sudanese-American frontman Ahmed Gallab exults
over synths, horns and harmonies on the title
track, named after a French term for disorientation,
like you’re in another world. Sudan’s diversity and
recent uprisings inspired the rubbery “Ya Sudan”;
“Everybody” and “The Searching” unite inclusive
convictions with urgent rhythms. Lyrically, it’s more
earnest than poetic. Musically, it melds funk, R&B,
Afro-pop and dancehall, though less magnetically
than 2014’s “Mean Love” or 2017’s “Life Livin’ It,” but
slinky grooves are not its raison d’etre. sinkane.com
JIMMIE VAUGHAN, Baby, Please Come
Home (Last Music Co.): HHHH
The veteran Texas blues guitarist tosses off tasty
note clusters, shuffles and greasy grooves like
a master storyteller rubbing words together to
audience-charming effect, backed by a horn section
that intensifies the flavor of discerning material
from the songbags of Richard Berry (“Be My Lovey
Dovey” is a savory delight), Fats Domino, Lefty
Frizzell, and T-Bone Walker, among others. Vaughan’s
in brandy-smooth vocal form, and his playing’s a
masterclass on “less is more” from the top of Lloyd
Price’s romping title track to the gut-satisfying close
of Jimmy Reed’s “Baby, What’s Wrong.” Carry on, sir.
jimmievaughan.com
20 PASADENA WEEKLY | 05.23.19