moe. Tin Cans & Car Tyres
Reviewed by David Weston
Tin Cans and Car Tires - 1998 - produced by John Alagia. Stranger Than Fiction, Spaz Medicine, Nebraska, Head, Hi & Lo, Plane Crash, Letter Home, Big World, Again & Again, It, Happy Hour Hero, Queen of the Rodeo.
Just as the BOA crew are relative newcomers to the wonders of Phish (1997) we have also only recently discovered the delights of moe. (moe. is apparently the correct presentation of the bands name, specifically to bugger up spell checkers I suspect). This is largely due to the availability of live gigs in MP3 format for download, a real boon for Europeans interested in the US 'jam band' scene. It's a shame that more English bands don't have the confidence to follow this example, after all it has led us to buy CD's by quite a number of bands now. It could be due to the lack of a viable UK (and possibly even European) live circuit, these US bands are racking up loads and loads of gigs each year which must have a major positive effect on their live playing.
Anyway enough of that, on with the review.
First off this is a brilliant, brilliant, brilliant album and I strongly recommend anyone who likes guitar based rock in the Allmans / Phish / Dead / Feat vein to purchase it immediately (get it's predecessor 'No Doy' while your about it as well).
TC&CT is the result of what is apparently a change of recording tactics for moe. featuring as it does a number of brand new, non-road-tested songs written specifically for the album. Another case of a band coming to appreciate studio recordings as a different entity to the live event and a chance to create something lasting and quite different. That said this very much a rock guitar album without excessive production, which captures much of the energy of their live sound.
moe. are normally a two guitar, bass and drums outfit but on this album they are joined by a number of guests adding colour to the sound with keyboards, horns and strings.
'Tin Cans & Care Tyres' kicks off with 'Stranger Than Fiction', spot on three minutes of Feat style (though rather heavier) rock.
'Spaz Medicine' follows and to anyone not familiar with their live sound this track is a good indicator developing as it does from a truly monster intro riff through a rthymically complex song structure into some great jamming featuring eastern influenced guitar scales. Big cheesy grin first (and subsequent) time you hear this one. moe. cram (successfully) more musical ideas into this 5 minute track than most so called progressive bands manage on a 2 CD concept album.
Next up is the more straightforward song 'Nebraska' check out the Steely Dan - ish voice box guitar solo on this one.
Much of the album follows the concise-track followed by jam-track format and I can honestly say that the whole album is a joy with a host of gems in both of these formats. The contrasts really work to make the album complete entity that keeps you excited from start to finish. The songs are in no way fillers and each is a little contemporary American alt-rock classic in its own right with none of the sameness that makes albums by say Hootie And The Blowfish drag after a couple of listens.
True to form the next track 'Head' is more of a live feel jam track. More superb monster riffing a dual guitar interplay. In one way moe. remind me of the Welsh band Man in that with a two guitar no keyboard line-up they have to constantly find ways to make the sound and arrangements interesting. To my ears they succeed 100% on this album.
I'll not do a complete track by track review but 'Plane Crash' with it's chamber-string introduction, dramatic intro riffing, brilliant lyrics and great chorus is a real highlight. Check out the MP3 live version elsewhere on the Bathtub.
The concise songs really score as well with loads of variety. 'Queen of the Rodeo' for example reminds me of the later country influenced Byrds material. The lyrics are great too.
There honestly isn't a duff track on this album. Go buy and if you are a European drop the band a line asking them when they are going to tour here!.
David
Ian found this somewhere, I am not sure where but it provides
some interesting background.
Tin Cans & Car Tires (1998 Sony 550 Music) - Tin Cans & Car Tires is moe.'s 'sophomore effort' for a major label. The album was recorded in the winter of 1998 from January thru March. For preproduction, we holed up in an old farmhouse in the Catskill mountains, near Hunter Mt. The house was actually a converted barn from a huge old Catskill estate. It had been converted to a bed & breakfast years ago. moe. rented the entire house & lived there for one month while writing & rehearsing for the album. Five new songs were written, & 3 were used for the album. The remaining 9 tunes were chosen from moe.'s regular rotation of live material, written on the road after the release of No Doy. Tin Cans was produced by John Alagia (Dave Matthews, Agents of Good Roots, Ben Folds Five)& moe., & engineered by John Siket (Phish, Dave Matthews, Sonic Youth). The album is without a doubt, the band's most adventurous studio album to date, & includes several guests, including Andrew & JC from Agents; Drew, Jeff, & Dave from Yolk; John Carroll (author of 'Afternoon Delight'); & John D'earth from Bruce Hornsby's band. John D'earth also wrote & arranged additional parts for piano, horns, & even strings on 'Plane Crash'. The album also features moe.'s latest & greatest drummer, Vinnie Amico. Vinnie may even be the drummer on our next album.