A Main Street Marvel

Last summer I reviewed “Exclamation Concentration,” an EP by A Main Street Marvel, also known as local singer-songwriter Jethro Gaglione.

The disc impressed me with its collection of sad-sounding, tightly crafted acoustic songs.

His new nine-track CD, “Expensive Tastes,” marks a welcome evolution and diversification in sound and mood. The wistful dirges that occupy Gaglione’s catalog have been joined by snappier, breezier ditties and more sonically adventurous instrumentals.

The CD leads off with “True or False,” a stately instrumental number that features a reticent violin and a surer-sounding, boulder-like, almost industrial beat. It’s ready-made for a movie soundtrack. Maybe Pedro Almodovar or someone equally artsy.

Another standout, the upbeat “Distraction,” features choppy drum rolls that lead into a catchy-as-hell chorus enhanced by lush instrumentation – including xylophone. It’s evocative of The Stills, which is a good thing in my book.

Gaglione’s warm, acoustic music even allows for some synthetic sounds in “Better Off,” when a streak of electronica slips into the background of the chorus.

The disc also shows off Gaglione’s versatility as a singer. His stalwart singer-songwritery tenor stretches a bit on certain tracks, particularly on “A Box of Wine” and the title track. On the latter, he assumes a playful, nasally pitch that approaches Rufus Wainright. Again, all good things.

Check it out at myspace.com/amainstreetmarvel. Gaglione encourages people to burn copies for themselves and friends. - What's Up Magazine

"AMSM raises a couple of questions: how did this come out of El Paso? What I mean is, you just don't hear this style of music here. You hear it coming out of Austin all the time, but not here.
"Expensive Tastes" is the kind of album that you hear from start to finish. It's packed full of great hooks and has a very high level of musicianship. Anoter surprise is that the music was mostly done by one guy..." - elpasomusicscene.com