Now even in the cold I will run through sleet and snow
With a cough I can’t control, it slows my paces
Some may shoot for gold, I’m just happy to be placing
It feels so good to be back in the races
– Dead Fingers, “The Races”
Local musicians and Rojo employees Kate Taylor and Taylor Hollingsworth are a darling married couple who just wrapped up a tour with their band, Dead Fingers. The 15-gig race was 17 days long, with points as far west as Lincoln, NE and far north as New York City. Just before that, they completed work on their second release, Big Black Dog. And a couple of years before that, they had their first child while recording their first album. A very productive duo!
You might be wondering where a young couple keeps a two-year-old daughter while they are busy rocking their bottoms across America.
“Ava stayed with her grandmother, Birdie, in the hotel rooms every night,” says Hollingsworth. “We would basically pull into town and get them situated in the hotel and then we would all go to the club and play and come back late. Ava’s routine became waking up when we got home around 2 a.m. and eating late night food with me and Kate.”
Hollingsworth shares a musical tale from the road:
“One time in a suburb of Detroit we were booked as a Halloween band – I guess because of our name, Dead Fingers. But it wasn’t Halloween, so we were pretty confused when the opening band was all dressed up in like zombie costumes meets Tales from the Crypt. They played like a New Orleans jazz coffin rock. Even people in the audience were dressed up. It was very confusing. I think they were disappointed when we got up there and played speed country with no Halloween theme going on at all! Apparently they eat muskrats down there, according to one of my friends from Detroit proper.”
And now, a brief album review:
There are 11 tracks on Big Black Dog, and no one song is really better than the other. This is a pretty consistent record with some pretty consistent musicians and songwriters. Big Black Dog is the sound of a band hitting its stride. Hollingsworth notes that they aren’t really plugging a single, and it’s easy to hear why – the album works as a whole. It’s a single, coherent piece. Sure, you could listen to one song, but if you can find 36 minutes to listen to the entire thing, you’ll feel good about it when you reach the grand finale.
The set kicks off with the titular track, and it is a great opener. Like a lot of Hollingsworth’s contributions to the album, it’s an up-tempo, reeling and rollicking kind of country song held together by the rhythmic glue of a galloping snare drum and an equally frenetic guitar and bass. Most musicians will probably recognize the main chord as a rooty sonority with a certain fifthy kind of power.
The hook is a fine floating contrast to all the commotion. A little dissonant swirl of three or four notes, and the words “big black dog” hang above the texture like helium in a kiddie balloon. This is one of Hollingsworth’s more restrained moments lyrically, and it pays off. Eventually, the balloon pops and the tongue twister rhymes come rolling in during the verses. It’s textbook Hollingsworth. That man sure can cram a lot of words into a short phrase. (Check the appropriately titled “Twisted” for further examples.)
The midpoint of the album features a standout performance by Kate Taylor on “Pomp and Circumstance.” Again, the song is great, just like all the others. The recording is noteworthy because it’s the only piece on the album with no vocal harmonies. An excellent bit of punctuation to end side A.
When Taylor sings, she makes it sound easy. She often delivers a thin or breathy tone and she always gives the song just what it needs, but I found myself thinking there was some power in reserve. We get a hint of that power on the eighth track, “Feet Back on the Ground.” It’s classic rock n’ roll, and you can hear Taylor stretching and opening up more here than on any other point of the album. Here’s hoping for more wailing like this in the future.
All in all, it’s a fun listen. Treat yourself to a Big Black Dog. Make sure you grab a Philly cheesesteak from the nearest vendor, then post up with some headphones or find a good sound system. The songs are served up well done, the bass lines are plump and fresh just like an Amoroso roll that even the gluten-intolerant can enjoy. The harmonies melt like the finest Cheez Whiz all over your musical steak. Bon appetit!
Big Black Dog is available online in all the usual places. Keep up with the band at deadfingers.com.