Krantz
Misty Morning Dew
Indie alt-rockers, Krantz, have a bona fide ten-song winner of refreshingly unique material with their latest release, Misty Morning Dew. They’ve taken all the best elements of classic and 90s post-grunge rock and created a record brimming with their own brand of poetic lyrics, psychedelic crunchy grooves and catchy hooks. I was a fan on first listen and that doesn’t happen often. The Nashville-based trio includes Jeffrey Krantz (vocals/guitar), Tee Tallent (keys) and Adrian Flores (percussion). Krantz himself describes the music as “Weezer meets The Beatles,” a spot-on assessment. The mixture of hard rockers, pop ear worms and soft, acoustic musings works perfectly on an album that shines from beginning to end.
The title track opens the record with a swirling sound that pulls you in instantly and falls somewhere between The Who, The Beatles and Alice In Chains. And it works. Brilliantly. Followed by the bouncy, acoustic, Ian Moore-ish “Happy,” the band immediately showcases their versatility.
“Sweet N Sour Mary Lynne” resides somewhere in the neighborhood of Tom Petty, REM and an unnamed 90s band that I cannot put my finger on – maybe Fountains of Wayne? Or maybe the 2000s/Bowling For Soup? Whatever it is, I am diggin’ it.
“Lilah” flows along with an ethereal vibe and some great guitar work followed by the strongest ear worm on the record, “Kitty Kat,” a rock/pop combo that highlights the skills of all three band members. You will walk around with it in your head all day – trust me.
The dreamy, pop-oriented “Alone,” an acoustic love song that everyone can relate to, could easily be on the radio.
In a seemingly apparent homage to My Chemical Romance, “Home” opens with clear echoes of “Welcome To The Black Parade” and is one of my favorite tracks.
“Beyond Your Control” kicks off with a very AC/DC vibe morphing into a David Bowie-esque pop groove, followed by another acoustic track, “Livin’ Large (I Don’t Know),” a sort of carpe diem song. Here we go another day another song/The afterglow can only last so long/I don’t know how it’s all gonna end/Yeah all I know is that while I’m here I’m livin’ large with friends.
The record wraps up perfectly with “The D,” a heavy, guitar-driven track that also features some fun keys accents.
There’s a big, welcome sound coming from this small three-piece band, and in the sea of today’s cookie cutter groups they certainly do stand out. Their combination of psychedelic throwback and modern flair is extremely appealing. I can’t imagine anyone sitting still while listening to this record. I highly recommend checking it out and give a double thumbs up to the mighty power of the trio. Long live indie rock!
