Songs of love, death and trains is a cool title and a pretty accurate description of this collection. Add the category of loneliness to this list and it covers all the bases
Bavis is a singer-songwriter from the foothills of Appalachians who now lives in Seattle. This is his second album after his self titled debut in 2005.
The first track 'All The Trains' features some neat pedal steel guitar playing from Kevin Suggs, who also produced the album.
Lines from this like "I know the rain must fall and I know all the trains are gone" set the downbeat mood for the record
Tracks such as the murder ballad 'Willow Tree' and cover of 'No Lonesome Tune' by Townes Van Zandt establish the country-blues roots albeit with the requisite electrified alternative twist.
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Bavis' possesses the type of monotone voice that tends to make relatively cheerful sentiments sound a little tortured, Tracks such as 'Raindrops' and 'Cigarettes & Bourbon' shed some glimmers of light amid the dark shades but the overall tone remains sobre and subdued throughout.
It is a solid record but curiously unmemorable. There is no single track that stands out to give the record a definite sense of identity. This, together with the relentless air of despondency, makes it one of those records where you recognize the singer's pain without really being moved to empathize.
10t 38.42
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