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New Heathens - Rating:
- Release Date: 2006
- Type: Lyrics are included with the album
- Genre: Rock
Review
The NJ-based New Heathens definitely have an East Coast, rootsy bar band sound going for them, but they distinguish themselves with the character-rich tunes and their gritty sound. "Getaway Baby" opens their debut disc with an endearing blast of boozy, blue collar rock & roll. Rough-hewn guitar riffs and a pounding backbeat lend a Faces/Stones-type sound to this sweet, sweaty number. But the lyrics, about a woman's abusive relationship, are far more ambitious and interesting than the typical bar band fare. Singer/songwriter Nate Schweber displays even more of his street poet smarts in the second song, "141," which deals with a white kid moving to New York City and settling in Harlem. Schweber loves to write colorful, richly detailed songs that traverse the American scene. The moody, slightly Smithereens-like "Doomed Generation" follows Hunter S. Thompson's life from Kentucky to Colorado to San Francisco. "July 1, Near Helena, Mt" is a wild, rocking story about restless Montana teenagers, while "Goodnight Paterson" serves as an affectionate look at the decaying urban city of Paterson, NJ. Although a song like "She's Wasted" offers a pretty standard, although quite rocking, look at a girlfriend whose "second home is at [a] bar, Schweber digs deeper lyrically on numbers like "Back to Jesus" and "Kansas, Romeo." The former deals with a quest of spiritual happiness while the latter investigates a controversial Kansas rape case involving a mentally challenged young man. Guitarists Butch Phelps and Domenick Tiziano play key roles in the band as their muscular playing stands as a potent counterpoint to Schweber's (occasionally wordy) storytelling. Schweber's working man lyrics, the band's Jersey home and their old-school rock & roll sound might draw comparisons to early Springsteen, but the more apt comparison would be to New York punk-fueled roots rockers the Del Lords and the Hangdogs. Comparisons aside, the New Heathens' impressive first release is a powerful, memorable effort. ~ Michael Berick, All Music GuideTracks
| Track Title | Composers | Performers | Time |
| Getaway Baby | (4:04) | ||
| 141 | (4:28) | ||
| When She's Wasted | (4:17) | ||
| Back to Jesus | (4:18) | ||
| Doomed Generation | (3:13) | ||
| Red, White & Blues | (3:37) | ||
| Goodnight Paterson | (4:29) | ||
| July 1, Near Helena, Mt | (3:02) | ||
| Kansas Romeo | (3:34) | ||
| For Cryin' out Loud | (4:13) |
