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The CD begins with five studio cuts and finishes with three songs recorded live. It kicks off with "Love Under Grey Skies," a Journey-esque '80s rocker. This was easily my least favorite cut, and not something I'd describe as rootsy. However the remainder of the songs make up for the start. These guys were obviously influenced by '70s and '80s rock, but these influences manifest themselves in more subtle ways as they stick closer to roots-rock on the balance of the disc. A bouncy, jangly rhythm like "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da," the '80s hit by the Police, will have you dancing to "Kings and Queens," about the pretensions and conflicts of male-female relationships. "Where have I been lately / with you I'm not so sure / the train has left the station / we're going off to war."
"Kimberly" is a power ballad with an intriguing chorus about an ex the singer still pines for. "Who first thought about flying / it wasn't the king of the refugees / who's to say that you're lying / when you say that you sometimes think of me / be free, Kimberly." Unlike a large share of the discs I review for Rockzillaworld, the Joyful Sinners emphasis is not lyrical. This is the kind of disc to crank up at your next party. Songs such as "Hell Yeah" or the rockabilly-filtered-through-British-invasion "Wallflower" have vocal hooks to sing along with, and "Black Sheep" shows a serious side in the story of a gay brother ostracized by the rest of the family. But it was the music that consistently held my interest. *If you'd like to be blessed by the Joyful Sinners, visit
www.joyfulsinners.com
and purchase your own set of "uplifting hymns from below
the bible belt." While there you'll find plenty of MP3s
to sample, information about upcoming DFW area gigs, and instructions
for ordering your copy. |
When I received this
disc and saw the back cover I wasn't sure what to expect. Four
clean-cut guys, a bit too old to be a boy band, but with a name
that certainly piqued my interest. I didn't learn much more when
I looked inside the case. All I found was a song listing and
the band logo. The logo advertises "Uplifting hymns from
below the bible belt." That got my attention. These guys
have got a warped sense of humor, which seemed promising. Their
web site describes them as "four guys from the Dallas-Fort
Worth area who love to play rootsy rock and roll." And they
all play instruments -- definitely not a boy band. Guess I should
throw this in the player and see how it sounds.
The Joyful Sinners
are John Donovan, who strums an acoustic guitar, Bruce Johnson
on electric guitar, bassist Barry White (no, not that Barry White),
and drummer Greg Fontanillas. All but Fontanillas contribute
vocals although the web site does give him an additional credit
for "knowing looks." These "looks" obviously
don't transfer well to tape. If you see them live, let me know
how he does in this regard.
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