A Trip to the Riviera...

One of the nicest things about listening obsessively to music is when you discover something you'd never heard of and actually like it. A got an email from a new label the other day called Glorious Noise exhorting a new release by one of their artists. As I was browsing the site I came across an mp3 by a band called Riviera from an album that's entering into the final stages of preparation for public consumption. I have to admit that I was a bit taken. Riviera plays country-rock and most definitely fits the alt-country bill. I have a sweet spot for alt-country so it was no mystery why I was trying to track down as much album info as possible by these guys. They've put out 2 eps and both are sold out. The new album At The End of the American Century is due out in the next few months. The music has all the hooks off an alt-country band: rocking guitars, harmonica, cracked vocals. They remind alot of Lucero, Tandy, and particularly Bottle Rockets which I consider to be a good thing. My description sounds a bit formulaic, but there's something different about these guys. Sometimes the heart just shines through.

From the Broken Hearted Dreams EP:

Such Sweet Sorrow

Friends In California

From the forthcoming At The End of the American Century:

Ashes on the Moon

Stranded