Cutaway Crossing

Cutaway Crossing - This Exit (Independent)
For a debut album it’s very assured. There are lots of extremely familiar Americana sounds and influences, including Whiskeytown and The Old 97's, but they’ve certainly got their own distinctive sound. There are no weak songs on This Exit - indeed, there are some very good ones, including "Texas Way", which swings along nicely and has a subtle feel of Little Feat’s finest to it. However the outstanding track is "Welcome Back To Tennessee", a song with an easy on the ears melody that effortlessly washes over the listener. The closest comparison I can give is Dylan’s “Knocking On Heaven's Door”. Definitely worth a spin and probably a purchase. www.myspace.com/cutawaycrossing
Stevo
- Stevo - Leicester Bangs - UK

November 2008 CD Review

Zanger Brad ‘Woody’ Bendle vormt samen met Trevor Howard, Brian Hall en nieuwkomers Brad Burgess op drums en Kevin Decker op basgitaar de alt.country en Americana country rockformatie Cutaway Crossing. Vanuit de thuishaven Kansas City proberen ze zich een weg te banen doorheen het muzikale oerwoud. Het hiervoor meest geschikte gereedschap is nog altijd een goede cd. En die hebben de vijf stevige kerels klaar gestoomd met “This Exit”, een verzameling van elf swingende rocksongs in de stijl van gelijkaardige artiesten als Son Volt, The Gourds en Wilco. Met het intens rockende “I Believe” geven ze meteen hun muzikale visitekaartje af aan de luisteraar en ook “Don’t Need To Talk About It” heeft een stevige beat als onderbouw. Hun motto is “Believe In The Power Of Music” en dat onderschrijven ze in haast elke song op “This Exit”. Passionele power zit er overvloedig in hun muziek verweven. Dat kan je ook horen op de twee singles die uit dit album werden getrokken: “Connect” met een snelle fiddle-riff en geïnspireerd op “Folsom Prison Blues” van Johnny Cash en “Texas Way” waarin de talrijke redneck-countryinvloeden duidelijk aanwezig zijn. Het gaspedaal blijft echter niet constant ingedrukt hetgeen te horen valt in “I Need This” en in “Knock Me Down” waarin behoorlijk wat aandacht aan de melodielijn en aan de vocale prestaties besteed wordt. Hetzelfde geldt voor de naar onze smaak beste song op “This Exit”: “Welcome Back To Tennessee Medley”, een duet waarin zangeres Karin Keener voor erg mooie duo-vocalen zorgt. Cutaway Crossing brengt natuurlijk wel zeer typisch Amerikaanse muziek die in de thuisbasis op veel meeval zal kunnen rekenen. Of dat ook in Europa zo zal zijn valt nog even af te wachten. De nabije toekomst zal dit uitwijzen. Daarmee willen we echter niets af doen aan de verdiensten van de groep met deze professioneel gemaakte cd.
(valsam)

ENGLISH TRANSLATION

Singer Brad 'Woody' Bendle together with Trevor Howard, Brian Hall and newcomers Brad Burgess on drums and bass Kevin Decker on the alt.country and Americana country rock-format Cutaway Crossing. From the home port Kansas City, they are trying their way through the musical jungle. The most appropriate tool is still a good CD. And the five guys have solidly insterted with "This Exit", a collection of eleven swinging alt-country rock songs in the style of similar artists such as Son Volt, The Gourds and Wilco. With the intense rocking "I Believe" they immediately give their musical calling card to the listener, and "Don't Need To Talk About It" has a strong beat and substructure. Their motto is "Believe In Music" and that is endorsed in almost every song on "This Exit". There is plenty of passionate power in their music intertwined. That can also be heard on the two singles from this album were drawn: "Connect" with a fast and Fiddle-inspired riff on "Folsom Prison Blues" by Johnny Cash and "Texas Way" in which the numerous Redneck-country influences are clearly present . The throttle remains constantly pressed up to when you hear what comes in "I Need This" and "Knock Me Down" where a lot of attention to the melody line and the vocal performance is spent. The same applies to the best song to our taste on "This Exit": "Welcome Back To Tennessee Medley", a duet in which singer Karin Keener for very fine-vocals duo creates. Cutaway Crossing naturally produce very American music in the familiar home style that many will be able to count on. Or that even those in Europe will be waiting to hear. The near future will tell. However, we want to take nothing away from the merits of the group with this professionally made CD.
(valsam) - Rootstime Belgium

Cutaway Crossing – This Exit
Making American Music
Review by Pete Dulin.
2008-11-05


Foreword
Emerging from the southern California music scene over 25 years ago, The Blasters perfectly described their sound, blending rockabilly, country, R&B and Chicago blues, as “American” music. That phrase repeatedly comes to mind when a band or artist produces roots-based music that doesn’t neatly fit into a prescribed category. American music echoes the essence of the United States of America itself––a nation bound by two oceans and blessed with a rich landscape that is home to a diverse and resourceful populace; a nation that collectively and individually represents many voices and views because of our hard-won freedom to express openly and creatively.

American music embraces rock, country, rockabilly, blues, jazz, soul, hiphop, R&B, folk, Cajun, and other roots music. Exactly who fits into this universe of music genres? As a matter of popular opinion and individual taste, that’s more difficult to delineate. As a nation and people, we absorb influences from other people, cultures, and traditions. American music is a global hybrid dependent on DNA from multiple sources and it manifests in many different strains.

No self-respecting band or artist consciously sets out to create American music, but it exists. What’s enduring about this idea is that the description is open and malleable enough to accommodate a legion of talent, whether or not the artist or band found commercial success, remain on the fringe of the mainstream, or are long forgotten.

American music is bred from a roster that spans decades, generations, and genres, representing a whole class of artists whose music isn’t easily pegged. This distinction means a lot of American music will not be easily found on the radio, but it does find an audience in bars, clubs, coffeehouses, county fairs, online, wherever people are willing to seek out and listen for originality. Such artists draw on tradition but also create a singular voice and sound that rises above the clatter of copycats. American music doesn’t necessarily clamor for attention like white-hot celebrity music stars churned out by the music industry only to burn out over a short lifespan. Rather, these American music artists speak a truth and fashion songs shakes off the pixie dust of trends and fads and must instead endure scrutiny over time.

This preamble is a long windup to introducing Cutaway Crossing, a local band that would easily find a place in a crowded convention of American music artists.

Making American Music

When childhood buddies Woody Bendle and Trevor Howard bumped into each other at a Kansas City guitar shop, the chance meeting rekindled a friendship after spending years apart on opposite coasts and returning to the Midwest. Their common interest in music also sparked a creative fire. They assembled a four-man band built on the sound of three acoustic guitars darting in and around a toe-tapping rhythm section.

The results culminated in a debut album, This Exit, released in September 2008 that unabashedly draws from country born in the heartland, nursed on the twang and jangle of Rhett Miller and Tom Petty, and raised on the West Coast country rock of The Eagles.

Bendle handles duties on lead vocals, acoustic guitar, and percussion. His voice has a stirring resonance that brings to mind the vocals of Bob Walkenhorst (The Rainmakers) with less twang. Brian Hall digs in on drums, acoustic guitar, backing vocals, and resonator guitar. Trevor Howard rides point on lead guitar and Dennis Maygers kicks in on bass guitar. A number of guest musicians contribute to the overall sound, notably Denny Autry on keys and piano. Autry’s performance on the lead track “I Believe” is essential, adding pulse-quickening fills and vamps to a crack rhythm section and ringing guitars. The song brims with energy and can-do attitude.


The trio of acoustic guitars forms the foundation for Cutaway Crossing’s sound, combining in a way that’s immediately likeable and comfortable. “Don’t Need to Talk About It” has an organic, wholesome country sound that rocks with an easy-going, good-natured attitude. Thankfully, Bendle, who wrote the lyrics to all but two songs, can pen plainspoken words without relying on that hackneyed gimmick of cheesy lines and clichés found in many contemporary country songs.


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Cutaway Crossing with Bleu Edmondson
Wednesday, November 12, 2008, 8:30 PM
Crosstown Station, 1522 McGee

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The first single “Connect” is a mustang bolting out of a corral and heading for the open range. The song sizzles from the fiddle work of Matt Wyatt and the beat dances like a pat of butter on a hot skillet. There’s plenty of room for the guitarists to bob, weave, and La Bamba around the fiddle and drums. Just when you wonder if the band can keep up the pace three tracks in, they deliver the polished gem “I Need This.” From the first notes, the song rollicks along and is readymade for a road trip soundtrack that flies out of the truck cab and tumbles on the wind. The sing-a-long lyrics are a compass reading of the heart; Bendle assesses the passage of “hours, minutes, weeks and years” and concludes, “Where I am is where I’m meant to be.”

“Knock Me Down” skirts along territory mined by Santana and The Eagles decades ago, dusting up the horizon with black magic on keys and psychedelic guitar flourishes. “Just Like I’m Supposed To” romps back to an upbeat, feel good message. The band excels at combining rhythm and hooks with a big sound and familiar words that audiences anywhere can relate to whether times are tough or triumphant. For some reason, this pop-laden song brings to mind mainstream acts like Hootie and The Blowish or Huey Lewis and the News. That’s not to say Cutaway Crossing is destined to become overexposed as they perform arena rock and mug for videos on MTV. Rather, it’s because the song is a trustworthy pop-rock antidote to the toxicity of anxious times when an uncomplicated, unpretentious song hits the spot.

“Texas Way” and “Welcome Back to Tennessee Medley” trot back into country as the titles suggest. The latter song has a heartfelt, small town message that would make John Mellencamp jealous. The syrupy Lynyrd Skynyrd guitars (think “Tuesday’s Gone”) accompanied by Nate Dean on faux steel, Denny Autry on the piano, and backing vocals from Shelby Krieg definitely tug at the heartstrings. Put down that Southern Comfort, find a partner on the dance floor, and make some time.

One track stands out on This Exit as something of an oddity. “Every Day” comes across as a country-fried steak with greasy potatoes on the side that’s just hard to digest. It’s a psychedelic disco version of David Bowie’s “Golden Years.” Bendle’s voice just doesn’t cut the mustard when delivering pseudo-sexy come-ons:

Baby, baby, I need your lovin’, Every day
Feel your breath, taste your sweat, Every day

And then later in the song…

Choose me, Use me, Abuse me, Every day
Wrap your legs around me girl, Every day.

It’s cringe-worthy. Really shouldn’t have gone there.

The last two songs earn full redemption for the fellas of Cutaway Crossing. “Luckenbach Today” is a straightforward story about meeting up with a pal and going on a drinking spree with a mishap along the way. The final track, “Bumpkin’s Gotta Party Down,” is pure American music. Matt Wyatt’s fiddle cuts loose across the expansive Kansas prairie. Bendle sings about one more sweet go ‘round of partying with family and friends in the valley after the chores and hard work is done.

Much like The Rainmakers, hometown heroes of yesteryear, were able to deliver homespun lyrics, a beat that rides big in the saddle, and an Americana rock guitar sound that resonates on a cellular level, Cutaway Crossing has crafted music that a lot of people in the Midwest ought to identify with easily. Don’t take this wrong. The music doesn’t pander to anyone. It’s American music. Whether it’s the country flare, the rock-n-roll punch, or the “just folks” friendliness, Cutaway Crossing is the kind of music that would feel at home at a float trip campfire along the banks of the Current River, on the open road while rumbling down the highway, down at the lake blaring off the boat dock, or streaming off the back deck at home while raking leaves and enjoying a cold one. Yep, these songs could find a home just about anywhere.

Woody Bendle, Trevor Howard, and the Cutaway Crossing crew are not spring chickens figuring out how to impress girls and worship at the country rock altar of The Eagles. They sound experienced and confident on This Exit, delivering song after polished song. These guys know how to have fun and know how to take a few lumps having learned a few lessons about life. They know how to tell an entertaining story and know that showing some grit doesn’t mean getting too cocky, pilgrim. Most of all, they know what they stand for and put that energy and steadfast belief into their songs. And isn’t that American music?
- Present Magazine