Takers - If The Blues Were Red
by Andrew Carver
published: 7 / 2 / 2003
Label:
Rubric
Format: CD
intro
Strong debut album from new bluesy Boston four piece that "follows in the tracks of the White Stripes, Black Keys, Mr. Airplane Man and the Soledad Brothers"
Bass drums hits and reverbed chords start off the eight tracks and 45 minutes of 'If The Blues Were Red', introducing yet another band that follows in the tracks of the White Stripes, Black Keys, Mr. Airplane Man and the Soledad Brothers. But The Takers have their own crazy twist on the lo-fi blues rock phenomenon: They have four members! One of them even plays bass! Could this be the future of rock’n’roll ?!? The Takers also seem to favour slightly longer songs than their bluesy brethren, and they’re quite a bit wordier — but they use that extra time to punch out some fine punk blues rave-ups. The one exception is their final track,'White Fuel', which drags a bit. Frontman Mike Carreiro’s doleful voice suits the music and things-done-gone-wrong lyrics; it does seem a little flat at times, but in conjunction with touches like the piano intro on 'Miles Between (What I Said And I Did)' he is vaguely reminiscent of Nick Cave. Michael R. Hibarger provides some suitable trebly guitar, and Chris Keene and Nick Blakey, on drums and bass respectively, are a pummelling rhythm section. To cap things off, the album was recorded at Easley/McCain studios in Memphis, the same place the White Stripes, Porch Ghouls, Reigning Sound and a host of other Sun and Chess inspired raw rockers have laid down tracks. A strong effort.
Track Listing:-
1 One Last Chance2 Rubber Bullets
3 Between 8 And 9
4 Miles Between (What I Said And What I Did)
5 The Screws
6 The Visit
7 Midnight
8 White Fuel
most viewed articles
current edition
Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies - Sala Apolo, Barcelona, 29/11/2023 and La Paqui, Madrid, 30/11/2023Anthony Phillips - Interview
Difford and Tilbrook - Difford and Tilbrook
Rain Parade - Interview
Oldfield Youth Club - Interview
Autumn 1904 - Interview
Shaw's Trailer Park - Interview
Cafe No. 9, Sheffield and Grass Roots Venues - Comment
Pete Berwick - ‘Too Wild to Tame’: The story of the Boyzz:
Chris Hludzik - Vinyl Stories
most viewed reviews
current edition
Marika Hackman - Big SighSerious Sam Barrett - A Drop of the Morning Dew
Rod Stewart and Jools Holland - Swing Fever
Ian M Bailey - We Live in Strange Times
Loves - True Love: The Most of The Loves
Paul McCartney and Wings - Band on the Run
Autumn 1904 - Tales of Innocence
Roberta Flack - Lost Takes
Banter - Heroes
Posey Hill - No Clear Place to Fall
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart