Album Review: Meekos & Me
Ever listen to God Street Wine back in the mid-90s? They were one of those original early 90s jambands, along with Phish, moe., Rusted Root, Strangefolk, Aquarium Rescue Unit – they made the club rounds all around the same time. GSW definitely performed at the Wetlands a bunch. And for whatever reason, this new album by Meekos & Me, an indie-folk-rock group from LA, sounds just like GSW!
This is a good thing, because GSW is really good. But it’s also weird. Everything about this band has a distinctly 2011 aesthetic in the tradition of other folky indie rock bands: strong lyrics, artful melodies, a slightly wispy voice, a cello playing beautiful countermelodies. And then the background tracks are just, whoa. They sound like a jamband. Not a modern jamband – not STS9 or U-Melt or Umphrey’s McGee. It’s the sound of GSW, Rusted Root, a little pinch of DMB, and some Strangefolk, with a touch of Leftover Salmon. Now, I like all those bands. And I like indie folk. But they don’t always go together. Sometimes they do, and there are a bunch of great songs on here. But sometimes they’re just a little incongruous, or the backing track is just not that great.
Of course, this makes me wonder – what is the sound of a early-mid 90s jamband? There must be some musical signifier that connotes this genre, since it’s what my brain immediately thought upon hearing this album. For one thing, it’s a relatively clean sound. Not a lot of effects, not a lot of distortion. It’s a mid to fast tempo, it’s a strong folk and rock influence. On one song, there’s a fretless bass and Latin percussion: echt Rusted Root. Check out my full review below:
Smooth Atonal Sound 