|
THE BELLRAYS
In The Light Of The Sun (In Music We Trust)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale
Those who think the BellRays emerged whole from the bosom of SXSW in 1999
may be surprised to find the note on the label of this disc that reports a
recording date of 1992, but those who've been paying attention to the LA
club scene in the intervening decade won't be caught off guard. Twice voted
rock band of the year by the LA Weekly, the BellRays have always been
something more than just that. This 12 track collection originally appeared
as a self released cassette in 1993, but it sounds as fresh today as it did
then because there's nothing trendy about the band at all. They play a high
energy brand of rock that can be traced back to the hard rock/R&B blend of Detroit in the sixties, best exemplified by the MC5. What separates this LA outfit from the pack,
though, are the vocals of Lisa Kekaula, who draws comparison to Aretha
Franklin and doesn't suffer by the comparison a bit. Personally, I'm
inclined to put her more in the Etta James camp, but suffice to say she's a
powerful gritty soul singer. Unlike Aretha or Etta, though, she fronts a
kick ass rock and roll band, not a soul or blues band, and the fusion of
styles makes all the difference.
The BellRays are still out there, cranking out great shows and self released
albums. You should no doubt check out the recent stuff, live or on disc.
Don't write this one off as an item of merely historical interest, though.
It's a lot more than back history catalog. It's a great example of the
music that the BellRays call maximum rock and soul.
Track List: Crazy Water * Wandering Spirits * Footprints On The Water *
Same Ground * Can I Make You Want Me? * Tell Me What The Sun Said * He's
Gone Wrong * Blue, Blue, Blue * You'd Better Find A Way * In The Light Of
The Sun * The Ghost I'm After * Tell Me What You've Been Working On
© 2002 - Shaun Dale
|
