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Review: Red Jacket Mine – Lovers Lookout
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by Fred Mills
(eight stars!)
The Northwest’s gonna rise again. Though Seattle and the NW regio...by Fred Mills
(eight stars!)
The Northwest’s gonna rise again. Though Seattle and the NW region in general no longer generates the same level of excitement it sustained for a good while in the aftermath of the Nirvana goldrush – the Internet, with all its unfolding egalitarianism, ensured that practically any regional scene could enjoy its fifteen minutes or more, A&R hysteria and press hype be damned – there are always little breakthrough moments we indie rock aficionados look (listen) for. One such moment arrives with Seattle’s Red Jacket Mine, whose second full-length is bursting at the digital seams with pristine pop and luminous blue-eyed soul, with hints of psychedelia and Americana lining the seams.
Did someone just mention pop? Right from the get-go, Lovers Lookout is aglow: “Stay Golden” chugs along on a rich bed of guitar jangles and organ hums, while just two songs later, on “Childish Things,” the band builds up a jubilant head of powerpop steam that’ll have you reaching for your dB’s and Big Star (hold that thought) records. On the latter track, guest Eyvind Kang also adds a striking, almost cinematic, string motif. And soul? The band dips a foot into Memphis and Muscle Shoals territory via “Such An Easy Thing,” an organ-driven slice of R&B brimming with passion thanks to songwriter Lincoln Barr’s smooth yet vulnerable warble. Likewise, “Apricot Moon” is a smoky waltztime ballad with soaring vocal harmonies and Kang’s strings again lending an uncommon dramatic heft; another guest, Ian Moore, unleashes some appropriately bluesy guitar licks as well. And everything coalesces wonderfully with “The Pose,” a shimmering, thrumming marriage of Brit-pop and vintage college rock, sophisticated in tone yet with a raw, primal edge.
As produced by Ken Stringfellow, Lovers Lookout has instant cover-sticker cachet – and Posies/Big Star/R.E.M. fans will surely find the four young men of Red Jacket Mine to be kindred spirits – but the bottom line is that these guys have the kind of songs and chops that will weather any level of scrutiny. Come on up for the rising.
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Q&A: Lincoln Barr Of Red Jacket Mine
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by Brian J. Barr
It’s a fact–digital is cold, analog is warm. And recording live in the studio cr...by Brian J. Barr
It’s a fact–digital is cold, analog is warm. And recording live in the studio creates a much more intimate and engaging album than any amount of knob-twiddling. Need proof? Listen to Lovers Lookout, the new album from Seattle pop group Red Jacket Mine. The brainchild of singer-songwriter Lincoln Barr (no relation to this trusty music scribe), Red Jacket Mine has garnered recognition for its mix of jangly pop, dreamy soul, and lonesome Americana. But on Lovers Lookout, those elements are wrapped in a vintage, fuzzy atmosphere resulting in powerpop that is as luminous and warm as a beam of morning sun in your kitchen.
Tonight, Red Jacket Mine will have the pleasure of sharing the High Dive’s stage with none other than Oregon’s Americana titans Richmond Fontaine. SW caught up with RJM frontman to discuss his band’s approach for this record and how living in Seattle has kept the Southern U.S. native from singing about fried chicken.
From the first notes of Lovers Lookout, I was struck by the tone and sound of the record. It sounds like it was cut live and recorded on tape. Can you tell me about the recording process?
You nailed it. We bought four reels of two-inch tape – just enough for an album – and cut the record live in one room (Ballard’s Soundhouse Recording) over six days. (We spent a couple of extra days on string and background vocal overdubs later.) Our buddy Ken Stringfellow produced and played keys live with the band. We didn’t have enough tape to keep extra takes, so it simplified our decision-making process immensely. Ken was perfectly attuned to this (somewhat outdated) philosophy, and got the best out of us…we couldn’t have done it without him!
If I’m not mistaken, your band is named after a coal mine explosion that happened in Virginia in the 1800s. How did the name come about? It does have a hell of a poetic ring to it.
Very astute! I originally encountered the name through a song on a Folkways anthology (”The Red Jacket Mine Explosion” by the Phipps Family). I don’t have a personal connection to the place, but I thought the name was incredibly evocative. An iTunes review recently pointed out that ‘our music does not honor the miners or their legacy,’ but I guess you can’t please everyone!
Local violist freak Eyvind Kang has contributed to both Lovers Lookout and your previous record, Hello, Old Cloud. What’s it like, working with someone as insanely gifted as Eyvind?
Eyvind is a true original, and an absolute pleasure to work with. I originally met him through my friends in the Stares, and he’s played on both of our records. He’s so far beyond our level, it’s ridiculous, but he always brings enthusiasm and spontaneous brilliance to the proceedings.
There is a confidence that makes Lovers Lookout explode and shimmer in an organic, un-digitized way. It seems like your band is really working together as a unit now.
Thanks so much – that’s the highest compliment I could ask for. After making Hello, Old Cloud, which was very much a ’studio’ creation – heavily layered and perhaps a bit too ornate for its own good, I realized that what I really respond to in records is the performance. (I’ll take Neil Young’s Tonight’s the Night over Steely Dan’s Aja any day.) I wanted to make a record that reflected the chemistry we’d developed as a live unit, so we did all the work in our rehearsal room, striving to make the live arrangement as complete as possible – little or no overdubbing required. Everyone involved rose to the occasion, and I’m incredibly happy with how it turned out.
Listening to Lovers Lookout, it’s obvious it was made in the Northwest. But I also pick up traces of Southern pop, especially Big Star. Since I know you’re from Tennessee and now live in Seattle, how much effect do you think geography has influenced your music?
I was born in southeast Missouri, but spent some very formative teenage years in northwest Mississippi, near Memphis. I still feel a powerful connection to the place, and some (or most!) of my favorite music – Big Star, Al Green, Stax, back to the Sun stuff and country blues – was created there. Despite the fact that my wife and I have lived in Seattle for five years, I still identify as a Southerner, and I think that sensibility comes through in our music. Fortunately, we’ve got some Northwesterners in the band to keep me from writing exclusively about fried chicken.
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Review: Red Jacket Mine – Lovers Lookout
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Subtitle: Big stars? Maybe.
Out of Seattle here is a quartet who manage to blend a rootsy easy li...Subtitle: Big stars? Maybe.
Out of Seattle here is a quartet who manage to blend a rootsy easy listening sensibility with a dash of early seventies chiming guitar pop. It’s a good marriage and one that looks to still be in the honeymoon period. There is an immediacy to tracks like ‘Childish Things’ and the ever so damn catchy ‘Showponies’ that take very little amount of plays to lodge themselves in that part of the brain marked ‘constant rotation’ (even though at times it reminds me of ‘Rio’ by Duran Duran, weird!). ‘Nightcrawler’ is a thoughtful, imaginative ballad that slowly evolves into a moody, broody epic whilst ‘Apricot Moon’ arguably the standout of what is a pretty solid record, is a wonderfully realised tune that pits viola against guitar to enterprising effect.
The record is produced by Ken Stringfellow whose experience of working with the likes of The Posies and Big Star is clearly evident on Lovers Lookout. Jangling guitars, soaring harmonies, and sharp, precise production is the key here making for a good hearty listen. Add that to a pop awareness and all of a sudden you have a band that, given the exposure, could do pretty well for themselves. What’s not to like?
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Red Jacket Mine, Aug. 29, VAC
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Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to move forward. Seattle-based Red Jacket Mine front...Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to move forward. Seattle-based Red Jacket Mine frontman Lincoln Barr knew that when he and the band recorded their second full-length album, Lovers Lookout due out in October. They recorded on 2-inch tape, something rather unheard of in the world of digital overdubbing.
“We’re proud of our first CD [Hello, Old Cloud], but we approached it like kids in a candy store,” Barr said.
On Hello, Old Cloud, if they wanted more keyboards, they added more keyboards; if they wanted more guitar, they added more guitar. This time around, though, they kept it simple. They recorded in a room together and, for the most part, kept the tracks as they were, mistakes and all.
Recording on tape gives Lovers Lookout and its American retro-rock sound an aura of authenticity. It also provides for a tonal quality and energy that’s more immediate and definitely reflective of where the band is musically. The result is church-organ pop and rock songs, rich with slow-burning slide guitar and lazy juke joint drums. And Barr’s Conor-Oberst-earnest voice and his emotive, intelligent lyrics on themes of love, life, death and even theology: “Perpetually wandering penitent / … From the parapet scream, ‘Thank my stars,’” (from the song “Deseret News”). When was the last time you heard the word “parapet” in a song?
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Just-Washed Honesty
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There really aren’t any smoke and mirrors with Red Jacket Mine’s latest album, Lovers Lookout (due i...There really aren’t any smoke and mirrors with Red Jacket Mine’s latest album, Lovers Lookout (due in October). Recorded almost entirely live on tape in studio, the band’s songs exhibit a naked honesty that implies exactly what they sound like on stage: clean rock/pop that’s only slightly sullied, as if the songs are being played by upstanding chaps who wandered into a rowdy Nashville roadhouse.
Singer Lincoln Barr produces thematic, high-octave vocals that have that just-washed Cadillac shine. His lyrics ring bell-like and clear above the loping rhythms provided by bassist Ryan Chapman and drummer Andy Salzman, who bridge the gap between 1970s honky-tonk and modern hipster rock transplanted to the Northwest. Patrick Porter, the guitar and pedal steel player, provides some of the album’s most interesting instrumental moments, including an intro to the song “So Long, Radiant Flower” that will have fans of country acts like Conway Twitty nodding their heads.
In fact, one of the unfortunate things about this album is how few and far between these “country” moments are. The production is so tight, it might feel a little anal retentive at times. The snare drum in many of the songs sounds like it has been muted all to hell, and Barr, although sounding confident, revisits many of the same melodic themes in his vocals. If these guys were to let it all hang out, they could provide the kind of sublime aural satisfaction that discerning home listeners crave. But overall, this album is a pleaser.
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Better Living Through Music - Red Jacket Mine - Saturday, March 7
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It isn’t often that you can go to a show and see a band at the genesis of a fairly prolific career. ...It isn’t often that you can go to a show and see a band at the genesis of a fairly prolific career. That is what awaits you Saturday at The New Frontier. Red Jacket Mine, fronted by the silky smooth vocals of Lincoln Barr, has created a darker American sound that they describe as twilit pop. Complete with steel guitars, crunchy drums, and a guitar that often soars into beauteous oblivion, this band will satisfy the country-pop hipster post-rock scallywag in anyone.
-- Chuck Dula
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Preview - REVERBfest at Lock & Keel - Red Jacket Mine
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Having lived in Seattle only since 2004, Lincoln Barr has already found a firm place in Seattle’s po...Having lived in Seattle only since 2004, Lincoln Barr has already found a firm place in Seattle’s pop scene. With his band, Red Jacket Mine, Barr has gigged relentlessly around town, perfecting what he calls “twilit pop,” which really is a more poetic way of saying they sound like a mellow folk-informed pop band with a tinge of British psychedelia. Heavy on the layered harmonies and mournfully pretty melodies, comparisons have been made to that other local lite-pop concern, Grand Archives. I hear a lot more Downpilot in them, however, especially in Barr’s whispery late-night vocals. Fitting then, that Downpilot’s own Paul Hiraga is a guest on their most recent album, Hello, Old Cloud. Currently, Red Jacket Mine is at work on another album, being produced by none other than ex-Posie Ken Stringfellow.
-- Brian J. Barr
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Review - Red Jacket Mine - Hello, Old Cloud
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If you want to be technical, Hello, Old Cloud is songwriter Lincoln Barr’s third full length und... If you want to be technical, Hello, Old Cloud is songwriter Lincoln Barr’s third full length under the Red Jacket Mine name. Barr’s first two albums were recorded via four-track and self released. When I reviewed The Daylight Moon (Barr’s 2nd effort) in 2004, a promising foundation was hinted at. That promise continued to build when Barr moved from Missouri to Seattle and acquired a full band for 2006’s Starboard Meets The Sound EP. The improved production values of that release take an even bigger step forward on Hello, Old Cloud. This is the true birth of Red Jacket Mine.
Hello, Old Cloud reveals how much Barr has grown as a songwriter in the last five years. His band, which consists of Ryan Chapman, Patrick Porter, and Andy Salzman (who has been playing with Barr since The Daylight Moon) deserve a share of the credit. They have helped bring out Barr’s broad influences, all of which are on display. Prior to writing this review, I learned that Ken Stringfellow of The Posies and Big Star would be co-producing their next record. This seems like a perfect fit when taking into consideration that I can hear the spirit and energy of both those artists on Hello, Old Cloud.
I’ve always appreciated Barr’s vocals and they are in strong form throughout the record. Bandmate Patrick Porter steps up on backing vocals, providing some excellent harmonies, especially on “Jesus’ House” and “22 Rose Petal Place.” An early version of the latter song appeared on Starboard Meets The Sound, but it sounds even better here. I also appreciate “Don’t (Settle Your Debts On The Phone),” a stripped-down track that recalls Barr’s early work. The confidence and general consistency of Hello, Old Cloud overshadows its missteps, of which there are surprisingly few. Although I believe that this is a very solid record, I am confident that Red Jacket Mine are just getting started.
-- Hugh Miller
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Weekend! Music - Red Jacket Mine (Doug Fir Lounge, 3/15/08)
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The golden twang of Laurel Canyon seems to be making a resurgence in modern alternative music, w... The golden twang of Laurel Canyon seems to be making a resurgence in modern alternative music, with bands like Grand Archives infusing their laid-back, summery pop with a slight country glow.
Add Seattle’s Red Jacket Mine to the list of folks to watch in this genre. With an excellent new album just about to be released, Lincoln Barr and company have been slowly generating a (much deserved) regional buzz.
“Hello, Old Cloud” drifts along languidly, buoyed by Barr’s slightly fragile voice and intelligent lyrics. Like spiked lemonade, it’s refreshing and intoxicating.
-- Barbara Mitchell
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Every Local Release: Download Red Jacket Mine’s Genial New Single, “Poplar Bluff,” For Free
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Seattle Weekly’s Reverb (http://www.seattleweekly.com/) – January 4, 2012
by Erin K. Thompson
...Seattle Weekly’s Reverb (http://www.seattleweekly.com/) – January 4, 2012
by Erin K. Thompson
Seattle rock-and-soul trio Red Jacket Mine will be releasing a 7-inch, “Listen Up (If the World is Going to Hell),” next month on Fin Records. To tide fans over in the meantime, there’s “Poplar Bluff,” a genial single that boasts easy, mellow instrumentation, a compelling chorus, and the sharpest arrow in the band’s quiver, frontman Lincoln Barr’s sweet, smooth, and unassuming vocals. Barr ominously described the song’s subject matter to me as “a particularly unsavory southeast Missouri town I encountered a few times as a kid.”
Listen to “Poplar Bluff” on Red Jacket Mine’s Bandcamp page.
