So the twangy band that I have been listening to this week is The Devil Makes Three and their new album Do Wrong Right. I don’t remember where I came across their name I’m sure it was on some chart. I had briefly listened to the album a couple of weeks ago and this week I gave it another listen, and I’m glad I did because I really like this album! The music is good and the songwriting is John Prine or Todd Snider like. When the opening song contains the line “The world is a car and your the crash test dummy. You know things are going to be good. From AllMusic.com
The Devil Makes Three is kind of a strange band: a drummerless acoustic trio consisting of two guitarists and a string bassist, the group is deeply rooted in the blues and country music, while enthusiastically incorporating elements of bluegrass, ragtime, and jug band traditions as well. But the group also makes no bones about its punk rock influences, and despite the lack of a drummer, it always plays with the needs of dancers in mind: “We play mainly rock venues where it’s not seated,” says bandleader Pete Bernhard. “It can get pretty crazy, people dancing and drinking and yelling. And that’s the way we like it.”
The band formed in Santa Cruz California and is an acoustic trio consisting of three New Englanders guitarist/frontman Pete Bernhard, stand-up bassist Lucia Turino and guitarist Cooper McBean. Like the Allmusic quote they play acoustic bluegrass, folk, gypsy music with an edge. The album is strong all the way through and to list the standout tracks would be to list every track! “Gracefully Facedown”, “For Good Again” and “Help Yourself” are probably my favorites but as I listen now to track 10 “Aces and Twos” I’m thinking hey that one’s pretty good. Overall while the music is really good (you don’t even miss the drums) what really stands out to me is the songwriting there are great lines in almost every song!
I also downloaded their release A Little Bit Faster a Little Bit Worse which is composed of live recordings of two shows in April of 2006. The album is also very good. I only listened to it once so I really don’t know what really like yet. Check that “Beneath the Piano” just came on, that one I really like! What I do know is that both albums are going to get a lot of listens over the next few weeks! So check them out!
Here’s the band doing “Gracefully Facedown”