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Christian Gibbs began his rock &roll career at age 20, when he arrived in early -'90s London for a semester abroad, answered a help wanted ad and promptly fled college to assume employment as Modern English's touring guitarist. The young man's parental nightmare took him to posts playing with Jim Thirlwell's Foetus, fronting New York rock trio Morning Glories and settling into a solo career, signing to Atlantic for one 1999 album before being kicked back to obscurity.
The Brooklyn singer keeps changing his band moniker- he has recorded as C.Gibbs Review, C.Gibbs and the Cardia Bros., and now simply as C.Gibbs- and his sound has gradually evolved too. On 2002's "Thhe Pinkermen Set", snarling electric guitars lace throughout one song, only to be displaced on the next by theatrical piano, then carnival music, then country. "Parade of Small Horses", his fourth solo disc, tempers such genre flirtations and finds Gibbs solidifying his devotion to orthodox Americana.
If locale is any indicator, the rural tilt may stem from his time spent writing songs on the property of Big Pink, the fabled catskills house where the Band once dwelled. He picked up alot there, alternately spitting tell-offs and crooning high-pitch laments with equal conviction, and adding instrumental turns with a naturalness suggestive of Neil Young. There is an occasional flatness to the music-endemic to Americana- but also a rich air of mystery, and one hopes Gibbs retains what he learned at Big Pink.
- Jay Ruttenberg - Timeout NY
C.Gibbs-Brooklyn singer songwriter goes country with a rootsy solo disc
Who: Brooklyn singer-songwriter C.Gibbs has been quietly been making music for two decades. His new "Parade of Small Horses" is a countrified tribute to Bob Dylan and Neil Young, with twangy steel guitar, honky-tonk keys and deep, crooned vocals about wayward women and old-time New York.
Hired Gun: Gibbs, 36, moved to London when he was twenty. Broke and faced with going home to San diego, he hit the road with Modern English as a "hired gun." "They weren't totally in their prime, but they were milking it, "Gibbs says. "We would play 'Melt With You,' and everyone would rush up and try to grab your feet. You'd think you were a rock star for one song." - Rolling Stone -Issue 974-5/05
Christian Gibbs, who played lead guitar for Modern English and Foetus before starting his own bands, never settles down. As his lyrics detail surreal and troubled visions, with titles like "Oversized Pin Cushion" and "Superficial Flesh Wound," the music wanders amid countryish rock, cracked cabaret oompah and elaborate, Beatles-flavored ballads. - New York Times
“Gibbs shows off both his songwriting smarts and the high caliber of his musical compatriots on The Pinkermen Set.. The lyrics throughout bristle with sharp focused intensity flowing with an ease that belies the care taken in its creation” –NO DEPRESSION (2003) - No Depression
Discography
C.Gibbs Review-"Sincerity's Ground" (Cargo Records) 1997
C.Gibbs Group-"29 Over Me" (Atlantic Records) 1999
C.Gibbs & the Cardia Bros.-"The Pinkermen Set" (Eastern Spurs/Rubric Records) 2002
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
With his fourth release, Parade of Small Horses,
C. Gibbs transverses the depths of Americana and emerges with a daring, evocative album. The country brother of Nick Cave and Tom Waits, Gibbs intertwines gothic country, folk, pop, and southern rock influences to create a unique sound that ranges from haunting ballads to white-hot finger-picking scorchers.
Although most of the album was recorded in NYC, some tracks were written and recorded in upstate New York, when C. Gibbs lived in the guest house of the legendary Big Pink. The title track is inspired by an E.L. Doctorow novel about the early days of New York.
With an exceptional band including Gerald Menke (Mercury Rev, Super Furry Animals) on pedal steel, brother Dan Menke on drums, Lance Kruger on bass, and Quentin Jennings (The Dylans, Melomane) on keys, Gibbs and company manage to take listeners from airy minor chorded introspection into a growl that would make Neil Young proud.
Gibbs grew up on the West Coast and moved to London at age twenty where he lived in a squat before landing a job as a guitarist for the 4AD band Modern English. Gibbs also spent some time playing guitar for Dave Vanian (The Damned) and Foetus. He eventually moved to NYC forming The Morning Glories, which released three records on Cargo/Warner Bros. Europe . Gibbs then released his first solo record under the moniker C.Gibbs Review and was subsequently signed to Atlantic Records. His second album, 29 Over Me, featured such players as Greg Leisz (Beck), Rami Jaffe (Wallflowers), Mark Garson (David Bowie), and the Tower Of Power horn section. After touring the states, Gibbs followed up with his third album, The Pinkermen Set
Gibbs stands out with dark songs
and Nick Cave-like vocals
-Spin
As his lyrics detail surreal and troubled visions, the music wanders amid countryish rock andcracked cabaret oompah
-New York Times
Christian Gibbs never settles down. As his lyrics detail surreal and troubled visions, the music wanders amid countryish rock, cracked cabaret oompah and elaborate Beatles-flavored ballads NEW YORK TIMES (2003)
Gibbs shows off both his songwriting smarts and the high caliber of his musical compatriots on The Pinkermen Set.. The lyrics throughout bristle with sharp focused intensity flowing with an ease that belies the care taken in its creation NO DEPRESSION (2003)
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