Kyle Andrews...

I love it when I get a CD in the mail that catches me off guard, sneaks up behind me and pops me a good one right behind the ear. That's what Kyle Andrews did to me with Amos In Ohio. The CD arrived with a couple of others from the good folks at Badman Recording Co.. I made sure I had my jaudiced and cynical attitude fixed in place, put the CD into the computer and hit play. My usual stance of suspicion and distrust gave way as the albums first track "Amos in Ohio" trundled out of the speakers. For starters Mr. Andrews may well be more battled hardened than I am. When the song hits the chorus and Andrews sings, "everything's fine but I think I'm losing my mind in cleveland", it's the way he drawls over the word Cleveland with a perfect combination of weariness and confusion. It's not like he's dissing Cleveland so much as the narrator can't figure out how the fuck he got there. Andrews' voice is a whiny creak that could be a distant cousin to John Darnielle if not for a closer kinship to Soupy Sales, it fits the songs just perfectly. The one sheet keeps citing The Postal Service as a reasonable starting point for comparisons but that's just a load of shit. The Postal Service is overtly electronic there's no pretension to organic sounds. While Andrews uses programmed drums and some humming synths those elements play second fiddle to his voice and guitar. While Badman probably likes the Postal Service connection for commercial reasons the truth is that Amos in Ohio is a singer/songwriter record full of well written lyrical tales of resentful heartbreak set to first class upbeat pop rock. Very much enjoying this one.

2 songs from Amos in Ohio:

Amos In Ohio

Lake Erie Lament