Logo
DiS Needs You: Save our site »
  • Logo_home2
  • Records
  • In Depth
  • In Photos
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Search
  • Community
  • Records
  • In Depth
  • Blog
  • Community

THIS SITE HAS BEEN ARCHIVED AND CLOSED.

Please join the conversation over on our new forums »

If you really want to read this, try using The Internet Archive.

The Felice Brothers

Tonight At The Arizona

Label: Loose Music Release Date: 14/05/2007

22871
benmarwood by ben marwood April 26th, 2007

2007 might yet be the year to start a fresh country revival. After the pleasant surprise of Kamikaze Hearts’ Oneida Road and its tales of small-town security and big ambitions falling by the wayside, a new group follow hot on their heels.

Fresh of face but haggard of voice, The Felice Brothers have weathered a few storms, quite literally. Composed by the (unschooled) eldest three boys from a carpenter’s family seven children strong, along with their runaway friend called Christmas, Tonight At The Arizona documents the reality of happy endings not being one of life’s guarantees. From teenage pregnancies and the study of your firearm as you contemplate suicide, to being arrested for the drugs you were dealing to pay for your mother’s medical bills, the gritty contents are delivered with a wavery-voiced nod to all-time greats Dylan and Guthrie, backed by wailed group choruses liberated from hick bars and films set in the Deep South.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, it is not an uplifting experience, especially given that the pain-wracked vocals and low-key feel of the dulled acoustic guitars and brushed drums add an extra measure of suffering to the already downbeat subject matter. They’ve obviously weathered some storms, both metaphorically and literally. This much is evident from ‘Hey Hey Revolver’, in which the simple acoustic guitar riff in the introduction cracks loudly and momentarily cuts out as the recording equipment is struck by lightning, the thunder exploding behind them just as the vocals begin for deliciously-accidental dramatic effect.

Initially, their pain is quite beautiful. Opening track ‘Roll On Arte’ packs an outstanding melody, each line starting high and gradually dropping low in unison with the bass; the similarly-suffering Mark Everett doing the same thing a few years back with the title track from Eels’ Daisies of the Galaxy album. It even shares roughly the same tempo and time signature, and it’s as effective now as it was then. But as the album progresses the melodies tend to thin until each sounds the same, broken up on occasion by the caterwauling of more upbeat numbers.

On this livelier side of things, ‘T For Texas’ and the live version of ‘Take This Hammer’ are both hearty (if repetitive) sing-alongs whose Catskills-rockin’ caterwauling communicates a good atmosphere, although seemingly more about enthusiasm than being in tune. Despite the moments of elation though, Tonight At The Arizona remains a quite sombre experience. Even ‘Your Belly In My Arms’, a tale of two parents-to-be speculating on the future of their unborn child, is lost amongst the heavy-hearted surrounding tracks on account of its similar delivery, despite being the one moment where it should be at its most peacefully reflective.

But these criticisms don’t mean that Tonight At The Arizona is not an album worthy of attention, just that there’s the occasional air of disappointment when you consider the strength of its opening track, and what it could have been. Should they refine their songwriting, there’s no reason why The Felice Brothers shouldn’t eventually emerge triumphant.

  • 6
    ben marwood's Score
Log-in to rate this record out of 10
Share on
   
Love DiS? Become a Patron of the site here »


LATEST


  • Drowned in Sound's 21 Favourite Albums of the Year: 2020


  • Drowned in Sound to return as a weekly newsletter


  • Lykke Li's Sadness Is A Blessing


  • Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alternative must sees


  • A Different Kind Of Weird: dEUS on The Ideal Crash


  • Way Out East: DiS Does Sharpe Festival 2019



Left-arrow

Farmyard Records present... at Bodega Social Club, Nottingham, Sat 07 Apr

Mobback
22864
22876

Fields

Everything Last Winter

Mobforward
Right-arrow


LATEST

    news


    Drowned in Sound's 21 Favourite Albums of the Y...

  • 106141
  • news


    Drowned in Sound to return as a weekly newsletter

  • 106139

    Playlist


    Lykke Li's Sadness Is A Blessing

  • 106138
  • Festival Preview


    Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alterna...

  • 106137

    Interview


    A Different Kind Of Weird: dEUS on The Ideal Crash

  • 106136
  • Festival Review


    Way Out East: DiS Does Sharpe Festival 2019

  • 106135

    Festival Review


    25 years of SPOT Festival: DiS Picks Its Best 11

  • 106134
  • Festival Review


    Twelve Hours Of Drone Is Just The Beginning: Di...

  • 106133
MORE


GREATEST HITS

    DiSband


    DiSband #7: Viva Brother

  • 77972
  • news


    DiS Launches New Radio Show

  • 104154

    Column


    DiS Does Singles: Best of 2013 so far

  • 91154
  • feature


    DiS meets Justice

  • 27270

    review


    Daft Punk - Discovery

  • 282
  • feature


    Drowned in Sound's 50 albums of 2008

  • 44086

    review


    Lana Del Rey - Ultraviolence

  • 95999
  • review


    Biffy Clyro - Only Revolutions

  • 55003
MORE

Drowned in Sound
  • DROWNED IN SOUND
  • HOME
  • SITE MAP
  • NEWS
  • IN DEPTH
  • IN PHOTOS
  • RECORDS
  • RECOMMENDED RECORDS
  • ALBUMS OF THE YEAR
  • FESTIVAL COVERAGE
  • COMMUNITY
  • MUSIC FORUM
  • SOCIAL BOARD
  • REPORT ERRORS
  • CONTACT US
  • JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
  • FOLLOW DiS
  • GOOGLE+
  • FACEBOOK
  • TWITTER
  • SHUFFLER
  • TUMBLR
  • YOUTUBE
  • RSS FEED
  • RSS EMAIL SUBSCRIBE
  • MISC
  • TERM OF USE
  • PRIVACY
  • ADVERTISING
  • OUR WIKIPEDIA
© 2000-2021 DROWNED IN SOUND