Johnny Dowd
Pictures from Life’s Other Side
Koch
I haven’t been intrigued with the eclectic nature of a record like this since I picked up PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me . Pictures from Life’s Other Side is a collection of sad, disturbing country songs combined with a twist of psychedelia and rock and roll. All songs are written and sung by Dowd. On several tracks, including “A Picture from Life’s Other Side,” the vocals sound like they are resonating from an old distorted phonograph or were recorded in a drainage pipe. However, beautiful backing vocals by Kim Sherwood-Caso on “Worried Mind,” “God Created Woman,” and others really complete the album. Listeners will likely be troubled by the stalking nature of “Hope You Don’t Mind” or the morbid “No Woman’s Flesh But Hers,” in which Dowd croons about the drunken car wreck that left his wife in a coma. Dowd writes thought provoking, real-life stories that are backed by sparse, yet ample musicianship. Adventurous country/folk listeners should look this one up.
Koch International, 2 Tri-Harbor Court, Port Washington, NY 11050; http://www.kochentertainment.com
