by rick grant rickgrant01@comcast.net
The groove roots music of The Gourds touched the soul of the packed house at Mojo’s Kitchen last Friday night. This band crosses over all musical boundaries with joyous style and a well oiled tautness that only relentless touring can achieve. Everywhere this group travels they convert new fans to their eclectic blend of rock, country, bluegrass, Cajun, and back-porch roots music. This gumbo of songs is played with mesmerizing rhythms that heal the sick and make even grandmas get up and dance.
The Gourds rose from the dirty white boy region of Texas in the summer of 1994, establishing a home base in Austin. They led the national roots music movement for a decade. The assemblage of multi-instrumentalists has produced 8 albums and toured the nation in their road seasoned van. These road dogs from hell will make their Austin City Limits premiere this November.
Kevin Russell on guitar, mandolin and lead vocals and Jimmy Smith on bass and vocals are the songwriters of the group, which also includes Max Johnson on fiddle, banjo and guitar, Claude Bernard on accordion and organ, and Keith Langford on drums. Together this laid-back force of nature cranks out original ditties with funky rhythms that get inside your head, revving like an old restored Chevy V8.
The Gourds’ countrified soul lifts the spirits after a few cold ones. They are night-stalkers who came to inject a syringe full of cool into the weary nine-to-fivers looking for kicks.
Mojo’s Kitchen was sold out. My wife and I found a booth over next to the band, which as it turned out, was ideal for taking photographs. First to rise from the tables and onto the dance floor were the pretty young women, “dressed up for each other,” and shaking their booties together. Who needs men to have a good time?
A guy came up to me and said he was from out of state. He was staying at Amelia Island. When he heard that The Gourds were playing, he said it was the highlight of his trip. Another guy, who had a baby strapped to his chest, was dancing with his wife. Oh yeah, the whole crowd was on their feet–babies, senior citizens, young women with tattoos on their arms, old hippies, new hippies, and my wife and I.
The band came on and warmed up with rock solid grooves so infectious I could feel it in my diaphragm. These guys love the road and bringing their personalized music to the people.
Kevin Russell switches between mandolin and electric guitar and his partner-in-songwriting, Jimmy Smith, provides the vocal harmonies, plays bass and also sings lead.
The group’s songs are distinctly different from one another. On some songs like ‘Moon Gone Down,’ the Gourds’ sound is reminiscent of The Band, then on other songs, there is absolutely no way of telling what influences were in play. The ballad ‘Steeple Full of Swallows’ opens with a mournful B3 sound with a banjo in the background. “You must be the reason all the lights go down,” Kevin sings. It grooves like ‘Whiter Shade of Pale.’ Other songs were improvised jams that ebbed and flowed according to the mood of the players as they added their new ideas to the moment. Once the band hit the stage they could play all night if the club owner would let them.
Of course, the band’s appeal crossed over all age and socioeconomic groups. The Gourds are best experienced live to feel their amazing balanced sound that is carefully setup before the group goes on. The band’s latest album is titled Noble Creatures and the rest of their catalog is available on the group’s website–thegourds.com.
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EU Critic’s Choice Awards
