Available today is the highly anticipated debut album, Boys & Girls, from the Alabama Shakes, an aspiring bar band this time a year ago. The Alabama Shakes has easily been one of the most talked-about new bands to come along in some time thanks in part to an early anointing by the Drive By Truckers’ Patterson Hood, some good breaks, and a rigorous schedule of endless touring.
Much of the buzz centers around the dynamic presence and unique voice of singer/guitarist Brittany Howard. Throughout the stellar Boys & Girls, she is as good as advertised, singing with unabashed zeal, and at times, threatening to come undone.
In fact, Boys & Girls offers that same raw and ‘rough around the edges’ feel of the Kings of Leon’s excellent debut, Youth & Young Manhood.
The lead single, “Hold On” is immediately likeable if not recognizable because it recalls the best qualities of both the Kings of Leon and the White Stripes with a strong R&B/Soul influence.
After listening to the album in its entirety, the overtones of R&B/Soul are as strong as, say, Led Zeppelin, and the Alabama Shakes have found the perfect balance in their music which transports the listener back to the 60’s and 70’s when rock bands channeled R&B/Soul more frequently.
The gospel-tinged “On Your Way,” the call-and-response vocals in “I Found You,” and my personal favorite, “You Ain’t Alone” are excellent tracks in which the band allows the songs to breathe like a fine bottle of wine; the band lays back and leaves some open space in the song arrangements, rather than playing all out, all of the time.
The Alabama Shakes are new to the confines of a recording studio and almost reserved on this album compared what I have been able to see and hear from their live performances. So, like many of the bands I enjoy, the best way to experience Alabama Shakes is ‘live.’ But for a studio album, Boys & Girls, is a great way to get introduced!
-Will Fisher, The Showbiz Kids
The Showbiz Kids Rating: 9 out of possible 10
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