KELLY STOLTZ
Antique Glow (Jackpine)
Reviewed by DJ Johnson

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By the time "My Silver Lining," the final track of Kelly Stoltz's new CD, is finished playing, odds are you're a fan. Not just of the CD, but of the artist, because this is one impressive guy. That final song is a simple, beautiful piece of ethereal songwriting, but that's just one color on this guy's palette. He rocks out in a groove of quirky twang in "Underwater Where The Action Is," shows an endearing troubadour side in "Please Visit Soon" and displays a considerable knack for acoustic blues in "One Thousand Rainy Days" (think equal parts early Steve Miller and J.J. Cale, then sprinkle the attitudes of classic bluesmen and the production values of Sticky Fingers-era Stones over that and you've got it). Just when you think he certainly must have given his all, he comes up with "Tubes In The Moonlight," a wondrously psychedelic song that would have Jimi Hendrix trying to figure out what Kelly's on. I don't care what else he's on, he's on my short list of current favorites. Diversity can be a double-edged sword, but Kelly Stoltz swings it like a ninja.

© 2004 - DJ Johnson