I was working in Orlando last week with a friend, local audio engineer extrordinaire, Geno Riordan. We were having a conversation about the great things which are on the horizon for KnoxvilleFilms when he mentioned that his band, Magnetos!, had cut a new disk called "Menage A Faux Pas". He gave me a burned copy, which I promised to listen to that night. Of course, I put it in my computer bag and didn't think about it again until a few days later. Sunday, as I was driving home from Tuscaloosa, I remembered it and popped the disk into the CD player. I was amazed.
The first track, "Every Little Thing", is a song which is executed with an almost eerie perfection. It is a near perfect cover of the Beatles original. It was as if I had an old familiar friend riding along with me. I listened to that song five or six times before I ventured into the rest of the CD.
Since I only had a burned copy of "Menage A Faux Pas", I didn't have a list of song titles. I didn't recognize any of the other tunes as covers (save an easter-egg reprise of "Every Little Thing" after track 12). I assume that the rest of the album is comprised of originals. The second tune has a definite air of Lenny Kravitz, but the vocals and lyrics set it apart as a branch of the same tree rather than a clone.
Throughout the album there were some very familiar influences. I heard sounds reminiscent of artists as diverse as John Cougar Mellancamp and David Gilmour. Rather than being derivative, I found them to be not only original but gratifying. "Menage A Faux Pas" is as comforting as meatloaf (not the singer) and mashed potatoes (not the dance).
If Geno is any indication, these guys are seasoned (read older) musicians who remember when rock and roll was not only played on oldies stations and muzak. I hope the Magnetos! play somewhere live soon. They sound like they are having as much fun making the music as I am having listening to it.
Geno told me that they recorded the album at a home studio with only basic equipment. According to him, instead of ProTools, they used "NoTools". Having worked with Geno many times in live situations (most notably the local PBS series "WDVX Tennessee Saturday Night") I know what he is capable of with a sound board. There is a sense of craftsmanship in the performance and recording that you won't hear from today's "American Idol" style performers.
I suggest everyone who remembers rock music go to the Magnetos! website, http://magnetos.biz/links.html, checkout their MySpace profile, http://www.myspace.com/96220347 and support their live performances.
You will not be sorry.
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