The Loose Salute
Tuned to Love
Graveface
Spinning off from the exquisite English country pop band Mojave 3, The Loose Salute, despite including only that band’s drummer and organist, produce a fair approximation of the breezy ’60s California shine and ramshackle rurality of their full-time outfit. Lead by acoustic guitars and supported at various stages by horns, pedal steel and banjo, the group’s sound finds its strength both in the loose arrangements of tracks like “Ship on the Ocean” (a space country number based in shoegazer textures but restrained by a lack of effects pedals) and “The Mutineer,” with its structured, summery bounce and rhythmic propulsion. These tracks are audio bliss, especially when coupled with lyrics recounting tales of characters whose lives are a mixture of joy and melancholy, where both emotions freely flow into and feed off one another.
Not all of Tuned to Love is this high quality unfortunately, songs like “Through the Stratosphere to the Bars” recreate a more contemporary country bar band feel and come off unwieldy and lacking the intimacy of the rest of their catalog. Thankfully, these tracks are thoroughly outnumbered by the group’s vibrant compositions, leaving this disc a bright reminder of how affecting this genre of music can be when done correctly.
Graveface Records: http://www.graveface.com
