FEATHERMERCHANTS
Unarmed Against the Dark
(Innocent 12th Street Records)
Reviewed by Erick Mertz

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The Feathermerchants dish up their brand of old-country-road rock, and do so with a straight face - perhaps tinged with a wry grin. The simple, yet stirring melancholia on songs like "Sitting Henry" or "Brooklyn Ferry" tug at your toughest game face and do so with an effete ease. Their version of the Psychedelic Furs classic rocker "Heartbreak Beat" is a thrilling display of vocalist Shannon Kennedy's thirsty pipes. She is an able compliment to muses Natalie Merchant and Sarah McLachlin, whose voices gracefully carry the listener through their aural arena. The brand of adult contemporary country rock on Unarmed Against the Dark dispenses with the gritty, shot-and-a-beer Wilco flair; the Feathermerchants are softer and easier, but their work possesses challenging moments. They are alternately loose and tight - think of a sad and grinned clown.

This is summer music, good for any season.

With an album like Unarmed Against the Dark firmly in your grasp, you might never face such a dour prospect.

© 2003 - Erick Mertz