Full Review

The Currys, This Side of the Glass Review

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The Currys is a hard-working band from that has been building fans and staking their claim in the Americana music scene since 2013. The journey started when vocalist/guitarist Tommy Curry quit his teaching job and moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, to join the harmony-based folk-rock outfit newly formed by brother Jimmy Curry (vocals, guitar) and cousin Galen Curry (vocals, bass). The band, who originally cut their teeth playing the oyster bars and listening rooms of the Florida Panhandle, has since written and released two full-length albums: their studio debut Follow (2014) and sophomore effort West of Here (2016). Now the Currys are releasing their third album titled, This Side of the Glass. Teaming up with producer/guitarist Sam Whedon and engineer Stewart Myers (Jason Mraz, Parachute) to map new terrain with their solid songwriting. As ever, the band’s three-part family harmonies provide the organic, lived-in feel of roots music, but the album aspires to a greater variety of tone, form, and orchestration than earlier releases. The Currys kick off the This Side of the Glass tour in early March, joined by Whedon on guitar and supported by Sebastian Green (drums) and Alex Rees (keys, organ).

Overview

Item Reviewed

This Side Of The Glass

Author

Seamus Fitzpatrick

March 1, 2019

In Short

Fault Lines [Explicit]
Good or Bad
Gulf Coast Home
Susie Knows
Los Angeles
Oh Boy
Jose
Fly on the Wall
Let's Get Drunk
Anywhere Other Than
Observations from a Dance Hall
Soon Enough
Pin You Down
Garden

Details

Release Date: March 1, 2019

All Songs Written by The Currys

Galen Curry...................vocals, bass, acoustic guitar, piano (8,14)
Jimmy Curry......................................vocals, acoustic guitar, bass
Tommy Curry..............vocals, electric & acoustic guitar, mandolin
Sebastian Green...............................................drums, percussion
Sam Whedon..........pedal steel (9,11), electric guitar (2,5,8,10,14)
Daniel Clarke.....organ (6,7,10,12), piano and keyboards (7,10,12)
Charles Arthur......................piano (3), organ (1,3), pedal steel (13)
Ethan Cypress.........................................trumpet (7), trombone (7)
Kevin Mall.........................................................................dobro (3)

Label

Self-Released

Length

47 minutes

Excellent songwriting and vocal harmonies. The Currys have a sound that is unique and very pleasing to the ears.

Review Rating

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Album Rating

9.1

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Bottom Line

This Side of the Glass contains fourteen songs that explores questions of perspective, an advantage that the band has since it contains three songwriters. The songs defy categorization into any one genre: the country nostalgia of “Gulf Coast Home” complements the folk-pop sensibility of “Pin You Down,” while the guitars and gang vocals of “Soon Enough” pay unmistakable homage to Paul Simon’s “Graceland.” The sounds of the haunting pedal steel by Sam Whedon adds to “Good Or Bad,” supporting the lush vocal harmonies. “Anywhere Other Than” has a full band sound with organ and pedal steel. “Jose” has a solid two horn brass sound of trombone and trumpet. Lyrically, This Side of the Glass is deep in meaning and flowing in structure. Each Curry offers his take on the time-worn threads of life and love, contributing to the album’s diversity of introspection and social commentary. Likewise, each in turn ruminates on the paradox faced by every performing songwriter: how to balance one’s roles as both the author of stories and the object of storytelling. A solid outing from a band that is diverse in sound, style and substance. This Side of the Glass has something for everyone and encompasses outstanding songwriting and harmonies. That’s the short of it!

9.1

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