Cigar Store Indians – Self-Titled
Ah, yes, swingin’ rockabilly. Grease up your hair, get to the barn dance, swagger mightily until you drop, and drag yourself home in your nineteen-fifty-any-year car.
This Atlanta quartet has one problem: They’re in the wrong era. I have no problem keeping the dwindling rockabilly genre alive, and neither does this band. The major problem for rockabilly music is the tendency for it all to sound alike, and try hard as they might, the Cigar Store Indians sound like all the other rockabilly bands I’ve ever heard — and yes, that’s a compliment. After all, I highly doubt that rockabilly bands have any ideas of writing change-the-world lyrics, anyhow. Their aim is for you to groove to it without worrying about depression, self-torture, loneliness, etc. Let Pearl Jam worry about that stuff, right?
This self-titled work on Landslide Records begins with “Hot Rod Concerto”. Impeccable timing between the rhythm section, Keith Perissi (bass) and Frances Ferran (drums) makes the work easy for Ben Friedman, who belts out the tune like a pumped-up Brian Setzer.
The pace does manage to change a couple of times. “Mother of the Bride” had me thinking they were about to really blow it open at a few points, but it stays midtempo and gently glides through on some nice leads by Jim Lavender and sweet bass lines by Perissi. “Crazy About You” clocks in at 1:57; if this song had graced any A.M. radio in the 50’s, it would of been a huge hit. “Call it dizzy / call it insane / call me insane, ’cause I got you on the brain.”
Other bright spots include “Barfly”, a high-paced vocal with a driving bass reminiscent of the ol’ staple “Hand Jive”; and “Six Sheets to the Wind”, a “my girl dumped me, so I’m gonna drink” song that really swings with some intricate work by Lavender on lead guitar.
This music was made for parties. It’s not heavy, it’s not deep, but who cares?