Americana Music Reviews

 

The Damnations
Where it Lands
Joy Ride Records


by Al Kunz

I'd given up on it ever happening. My seventeen year-old daughter's normal reaction to my music is to ask if I'd mind using the headphones. Her tastes run from Tool and the Ramones to Silverchair, the Australian grunge band. Sometimes even Simon and Garfunkel or Tony Orlando. Almost anything but that "damn country" I listen to. This time her puzzled look seemed to say, "that can't be country." The Damnations "New Hope Cemetery" was blasting from the speakers, sounding like a long lost X cut. "Who's that?" Maybe someday she'll figure out that Americana doesn't always mean country.

When the jangle-popish "Animal Children" began playing, she discovered that the Damnations aren't a punk band either. Bassist Amy Boone says, "The concept of genres is an afterthought with this band." According to guitarist Rob Bernard, their influences are blending together. "You can't just pick out country and punk. I think we've really evolved the sound to where it draws on a lot of different things and it's its own thing."

These influences are also broad. Three covers, the Minutemen's "Corona," "Steeple Full of Swallows," written by the Gourds' Kevin Russell, and "Wanna Be Your Mama," by Doug Sahm, indicate just how broad. The influence of Sir Doug, the original Texas genre-blender, are reinforced by the Damnations original, "Root On," with its intro-rhythms that sound like a hardened version of "She's About a Mover."

Since the 1998 release of Half Mad Moon, the debut disc for Damnations TX, sisters Amy Boone and Deborah Kelly have seen their little ol' band go through some changes. Drummer Keith Langford was only on loan from the Gourds anyway. When Langford returned to his day job, Conrad Choucroun took his place. They recorded Where it Lands with Choucroun way back in '00, then promptly saw their label, Sire, merge with London Records. Suddenly they found themselves in limbo while the restructured label tried to decide where they fit in the business plan. Then Choucroun left, leaving them drummer-less.

As their affairs slowly untangle, it appears it may all work out for the best. They negotiated a deal with Sire to gain control to the masters of Where it Lands and formed Joy Ride, their own record label, to release the disc. They're still looking for a permanent drummer but are getting by with fill-ins. And then there's the matter of that little TX-ectomy. The native New Yorkers shouldn't be seen as distancing themselves from their adoptive home. Cautious record company attorneys, concerned by a potential name conflict with another band added the TX suffix. Since they now own the label the Damnations get to call the shots and reverted to the name they had always wanted.

The band also has a soft side, with the sisters harmonizing on "All Night Special," a song with a musical ancestry that's a little bit of the Drifters and a lot of the Byrds and the Mamas and the Papas with updates by the Damnations. "The all night special's back by demand / by demand the one and only one / rejoice in inanimate objects and the love of similar subjects / it's the all night special back by demand." Boone and Kelly also showcase their sisterly harmonies in "Bloodhound," about the travails of finally moving out of Mom and Dad's place.

Mother's got the nose of a bloodhound
Brother needs to find his own place
Father with his working class ethics
Believes everyone should pull their own weight

Wait all day for money in the mailbox
There's a feel of chaos on the wind
Keep the car engine runnin'
Duck down in the seat while I go in

Songwriting duties for the Damnations originals were split between five Boone - Kelly collaborations and three that Bernard did alone. Bernard's contributions include the instrumental mood piece, "Tora Tora Tora." He also takes a turn at lead vocals on his other two compositions, "Animal Children" and the roots-rocker (what bad pun?) "Root On."

The harmonizing is great on the slower numbers; I love the Sir Doug and Minuteman covers and rock out to "Root On"; but, like my daughter, the cut that keeps me coming back is "New Hope Cemetery." It may be the inspiration I need to drag out those old X albums, but it made me feel like my parents as I tried to fully decipher the double-time vocals through the pounding of drums and crunching of guitars. I'll leave you with what I think are the lyrics to its chorus.

If you're gonna bury it then bury it
Just north of here to Lampasas
To the green green grasses
Of the New Hope Cemetery

*Where it Lands is already available in Texas stores, although it won't officially be released nationwide for a couple weeks (3/26/02). But it's available immediately at www.damnations.com and some Internet outlets. Beat the rush and order now.



Contact Al Kunz at kunz-at-rockzilla.net

 
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