Ex-Cowboy
Diet Pop Records, 2013
Ex-Cowboy has dark, dreamy hauntingly pretty melodies throughout this self titled release. Michael Huertais at the center of this melancholy collection of Americana where the beautiful vistas hide the bones of forgotten cruelties. One doesn’t have to dig too deep before they break through the soil. A good hard rain’ll force them up just the same.
There’s a sullen, downbeat rusticated, frontier orchestra vibe to the songs and it works really well.
“Some Things Don’t Ever Die,” and “Dead Parade,” are some of the more obvious examples of the bands somber thoughts. With murky and opaque vocals set at a direct right angle to the brightly, crisp and sorrowful guitar tones, there’s a melding of light and dark throughout.
For as spartan as the compositions are, Huerta and producer Logan Greene make wonderful use of instrumentation to add texture and color. The songs never feels dense or overloaded, but avoid being cluttered as well. There’s a feel reminiscent of Neil Young’s early 1970’s folky releases.
“All Boats are Coffins,” is as close to humor as the band seems to come, but the joke may be lost on most. Never you mind, this release is wonderfully suited as the soundtrack for your next break-up, hang-over, or serious bout of brooding.