Tim Kasser – Southern Tier Blues
self release
10 songs time – 34:10
Picture one Tim Kasser, he has knowingly entered the musical twilight zone. Most of you know most of these blues, r&b and rock standards, but not in this deconstructed form. The lyrics remain intact, but the melodies and delivery are completely different. At first listen you might not be able to recognize the song until the lyrics kick in. Mr. Kasser knows his way around a piano and he ably talk-sings his way through this adventure. He has employed musicians that provide various guitars, mandolin, keyboards, fiddle, clarinet, drums, percussion and backup vocals. The backing throughout is sparse and un-intrusive. After the initial musical shockwaves have left your body, you are left with one man’s artistic vision.
A rhythmic piano coda, gentle cymbals and dissonant electric guitar lead into a band version of “I Heard it through the Grapevine”. The nuanced guitar and organ fit the mood perfectly. His reading of the blues classic “Trouble in Mind” is given a minimalist treatment with only piano, Lucian T. Sacheli on harmonica and acoustic guitars. This one delivered close to the original arrangement.
“Frankie & Johnny” is taken at a sprightly snare drum driven pace that is enhanced by Cindy Tag on clarinet. Big Bill Broonzy’s “Key To The Highway” finds Tim on piano with the only accompaniment being Lauren Faggiano on duet vocals. Leadbelly will be turning over in his grave when he hears his “Bourgeois Blues” done as a face paced rocker with a rough hewn vocal. “Hoochie Coochie Man” is slowed down with Tim’s tasteful piano, drums and bass with no guitar in sight.
John Lee Hooker’s “Boogie Chillen” finds just Tim singing over his jazzy piano riffing. The piano is relinquished for acoustic guitar, fiddle and mandolin on “Cocaine Blues”. A stark atmosphere is created appropriately for “The Lost Soul”. Credence Clearwater Revival’s “Bad Moon Rising” attains an other-worldly gospel vibe via haunting backing vocals, organ and what sounds like a synthesizer.
What is done here may be an acquired taste, but it tends to grow on one. The musicianship here is first rate. Take a chance on an adventurous endeavor. You are traveling through another dimension-a dimension not only of sound, but of mind.
