Ben Mallott
Austin, Texas, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
The new release by Austinite, Ben Mallott, Look Good, Feel Good, is a musical monkey wrench to the sated mechanics of the jaded ear. I have said that I think great musicians drawing from a wide view of musical sources have always made the best conduits for synthesis (or in the modern parlance, Mash up) and Mallott adeptly shows this ability with this extraordinary surprise.- Twang Nation March '09 - Twangnation.com
There’s a new kid in town and he writes songs that stun. His songwriting, Americana in every way, plays with confidence and sincerity.
Mauro Eufrosini, Jam! Magazine (Italy), April '09
- Jam! Magazine (Italy)
"While he's comfortable with his music being tagged Americana, you can hear parts rockabilly, mariachi, folk, and even a little tear-in-your-beer country on the debut album. Mallott's velvety voice pulls all of those parts together, so much so that he was named by just about every music heavyweight in town who was asked about the best up-and-coming Austin artists."
- Austin Monthly, March '09 "Top 9 to Watch in '09" - Austin Monthly
"I'm relieved to tell you it was obvious from the first song that Mallott is no Texas music wannabe chasing the ghosts of Jerry Jeff, Robert Earl and Pat Green. By the time Mallott took me to the second track, "Shotgun Suzie," a touching duet with Eliza Gilkyson echoing her "Dark Side of Town," there was no doubt this fellow is a serious, gifted songwriter with an entirely unique vocal style: "Shotgun Suzie got high for the first time Tuesday, and mama she ain't comin' back again / she bites down to pass the time, just another concubine to the long happy wait for the end."
And by the time Mallott got me over to track four, "I Want It All," I knew I was listening to a major talent. Not many 32-year-old honkies from Sugarland can sing - or write! - a soul song that could make Otis Redding proud. What a mellow voice, filled with equal mixtures hurt and hope. The false stops and drum punches complete a sound that could just as easily have been produced at Stax than at Mark Hallman's Congress House studio in south Austin.
As the rest of the album unfolded with tunes like "The Artful Dodger" I realized that Mallott has musical sophistication far beyond his years. I also appreciated that here was young man doing it on his own dime yet eschewing any kind of pandering success formula, not afraid to mix steel guitars and Stax horns, to mix country songs with songs like "Leaving" that sound like the young man has listened to his share of English folkies, although he channels that stuff through some vocal grit that recalls Ted Hawkins at his most plaintive."
-Houston Press Feb 23, 2009
- Houston Press
Since releasing his stellar 2008 country-soul debut, Look Good, Feel Good, Ben Mallott has been taking center stage around town. He steps up to the plate at the Continental Club with the soon-to-be-departed Dedringers tonight, and you can also check the LaMontagne-like crooner at the Cactus Cafe Saturday, Jan. 31, opening for Eliza Gilkyson, who also graces his album. Take your pick, but catch the local up-and-comer while you can. – Doug Freeman - Austin Chronicle
"Ben Mallott's pearl snaps and patterned cowboy boots on the cover of his debut LP are a bit misleading. Although he's backed at times by some solid steel and gently chugging rhythms, the Austinite's propelled by his impressively soulful vocals. Opener "Heartbreaks" showcases an impressively subtle range, and though there are touches of Damien Jurado, Daniel Lanois, and even Ray LaMontagne's mellow grit, Mallott winds with dexterous versatility. Unexpected horns blaze mariachi on "Purgatory's Last Massage Parlor" and Memphis on "I Want It All," while "Love Is Cold Water" bounces with B-3 organ and a New Orleans' jazz romp at the end. The sway behind Mallott's low, breathy swells on "The Artful Dodger" counter the rockabilly piano romp of "Cold Feet." Eliza Gilkyson lends her vocal magic to "Shotgun Suzy," and tender numbers such as "Leaving," "Over Time," and the darkly twisted "Just Like Angels" are all beautifully wrought" - Doug Freeman - Austin Chronicle
"His profile shoots up with the release of 'Look Good, Feel Good.' First-rate songwriting." - Michael Corcoran - Austin American-Statesman
"Hey out there....listen up to this guy..you'll be glad you did. He's great!!!!! This is the real deal." -Eliza Gilkyson - Eliza Gilkyson
"A sound that’s purely Austin and blends Americana heart and soul in each track." -Austin Daze - Austin Daze
"Don't look for me, I'll be long gone," Ben Mallott declares on the closing track (“Just Like Angels”) of his debut LP, Look Good, Feel Good. But, with any luck this artist won't be disappearing anytime soon. Across twelve original songs, Mallott lyrically exposes his listeners to the trappings of the human condition: highlights and moments of sadness, loving and leaving. His first solo album provides a genuine example of Americana-style poetry.
In "Heartbreaks," Mallott's solid opener, his grainy voice warns listeners of life's brevity and its tendency towards inconsistency. His soothing rasp stresses the importance of doing what one can to squeeze everything out of their short time here before it's too late. The song's message seems to be something in which Mallott truly believes, having accomplished what many only dream of: a rather notable debut into Austin's long-established singer-songwriter set with a cast of notables to boot (Eliza Gilkyson, Elana James, Mike Mordecai, Laura Scarborough).
Recorded at The Congress House, a small house turned recording studio where the likes of David Byrne, Shawn Colvin, and even Oasis have previously been clients, Look Good, Feel Good is all at once parts rockabilly, country, and folk with a couple mariachi horns thrown in for good measure. Austin-based, folk songstress Eliza Gilkyson lends her vocals to one of Mallott's most memorable tracks, "Shotgun Suzy."
In a city known for its love of all things musical, Ben Mallott's freshman album is a fine addition to the already expansive music catalogue making up the very fabric and identity of Austin, Texas. -Bryan Smith, Austin.com
- Austin.com
Discography
LP- Look Good, Feel Good is set for release in December, 2008. It includes 11 original songs.
Photos
Bio
SXSW 2009
Old Settler's Music Fest 2009
Kerrville Folk Fest New Folk Finalist '09
Rocky Mountain Folks Fest '09
Americana Music Assoc Showcase '09
SW Reg Folk Alliance '09 Showcase
Roots formed in old standards, a juvenile heart, and his mother's Ray Charles albums, Austin's Ben Mallott uses his grainy timbre to remove the punctuation between singer and songwriter.
After completing his first solo recording, Look Good, Feel Good, in the summer of 2008, Ben Mallott has firmly established himself in the forefront of Austin's bustling singer-songwriter set. The record was released locally in December 2008 to wide praise and continues to garner Mallott attention as a unique voice. Blending a variety of influences from across the musical spectrum, Mallott's sound while all his own, fits in nicely into the diverse landscape that has become American music.
Mallott spent his summer touring the West coast and playing festivals from SXSW, to Colorado's Folks Fest, as well as showcasing at The Americana Music Association Conference and Festival in Nashville.
He's set to begin work with producer Mark Hallman on another recording project this winter. "I can't wait. This record is going to have a bigger, faster sound. I don't think anyone really expects that from me. The music feels like it's evolving quickly. I'm just trying to keep up."
Links
