Edgehill Avenue

Dense with bold Southern rock-style anthems, Allman Brothers-like swirling jams, and jangly countrified folk-rock – Edgehill Avenue’s new album Rambler is powerful, memorable music.

The opening title cut is a heavy statement, a blues-rocker about abolitionist Frederick Douglass. The smoldering guitars are overlaid with big slabs of organ chords, and Drew Perkins’ voice is rich and dramatic. The driving “With These Hands” that follows is one of my favorites – again, Paul Nevitt provides soaring organ riffs, and the harmonic chorus lingers in my head. “Just Another Day” is simply wondrous – ringing guitars, another lusty vocal turn from Perkins, and an overall lilting, psychedelic feel like a good Allmans tune.

The guys take a bluesy turn with the Black Crowes-esque “Don’t Come Around Here Anymore.” Lead guitarist “Hurricane” Mike McLaughlin fires off stinging lines, and Daphne Luster contributes soulful backing vocals. And “I’ll Be Leaving Now” is a nice detour, a pretty acoustic-based folk number. Another mellow delight, “Out Of Time,” comes later in the disc – McLaughlin’s crisp solo on that one is a treat, and a departure from his searing electric work.

“Just Don’t Care Anymore” is a nifty partyin’ song, choogling along at a brisk rockabilly clip with more blasts of Hurricane’s guitar and sweeps of barrelhouse piano from Nevitt. “Holding On” is richly textured atop the deep groove of John Poole’s bass and Lamont Melson’s drums – every instrument is given a chance to soar on this, the disc’s longest track. The set ends with the gospel/jazz/soul of “Justified,” a socially conscious bookend to the opening track. It’s as musically adventurous as “Holding On,” and the solos are brilliant.

Edgehill Avenue’s Rambler inhabits a unique spot at the crossroads where heady jams meet down-home roots rock. And this is a band I would love to see and hear perform.

- Chip Withrow - musesmuse.com

A full listing with links and scans of press reviews and articles is available at our official web site EPK - www.edgehillave.com/presskit - Edgehill Avenue

http://www.louisvillemusicnews.net/webmanager/index.php?WEB_CAT_ID=49&storyid=5291

The Hammond B3 organ is the most indispensable of instruments. It instantly adds a level of texture and sacred sensuousness to whatever song uses it, whether it's the lead instrument or just somewhere burbling behind in the rhythm section. It can roar or growl, shake the floorboards or send high tones up to the angels. Think of its use in Booker T. and the MGs "Green Onions" or "Time is Tight." If it had been used in "MacArthur Park," it would've turned that endless tour of purple melodrama into something soulful, maybe even with a finger-snapping groove. And that's a cake we would have gladly brought in from the rain.

So when it's added to some crisp electro-acoustic Americana music as performed by Louisville's Edgehill Avenue, you get Rambler, a slightly souped-up version of the EP the band released in 2007. On Rambler, you get a piping-hot stew of southern rock, blues, folk, and country, served up in generous portions, that kicks you in the pants one song, then buys you a drink on the next.

Rambler starts off with a snarl with the title track, sung in the persona of abolitionist Frederick Douglass, and then lightens up in the next track, the romantic (in lyric only) "With These Hands." Things slow down halfway through with the solemn "I'll Be Leaving Now," where the band is joined by background vocalist Leigh Ann Yost, then pick back up with the booka-chicka-booka-chicka, train-driving rhythm of "Just Don't Care Anymore." And just as it begins with a snarling sound, Rambler ends on one as well with "Justified," a short, thought-provoking treatise on genocide and a warning about those with the power to stop it who will feel justified in their actions.

Throughout the work, we get crisp, dead-on-target musicianship from the entire lineup of Edgehill Avenue: vocalist Drew Perkins, lead guitarist Mike McLaughlin, bassist John Poole, drummer Lamont Melson, and the growly organ work from Paul Nevitt.

Americana music is referred to as a catch-all genre: the weathered, raw sound of traditional country shot through with some blues and rock. It's not as cleanly defined as other genres, but that's a good thing. It's as flexible. It's not obligated to lock itself into a box for handy classification. It is, indeed, a stew with ingredients cast off from all the other main dishes, the leftovers from so many ordinary meals. And adding a huge slice of Hammond B3 truly pulls all those ingredients together into something tasty.

It's from that stew that we can enjoy a piece of work like Rambler.

Find out more at www.edgehillave.com. - Louisville Music News

http://www.leoweekly.com/music/reviews/rambler

The spirit of Bruce Springsteen’s epic song “The River” is conjured repeatedly in Edgehill Avenue’s new release. Many of the songs are in minor chords, which I have no problem with; in fact, I prefer the minor key, and Edgehill Avenue pulls it off splendidly. Second track “With These Hands” is as catchy as a Tom Petty hit. The voice of Drew Perkins, lead singer and rhythm guitarist, reminds one of a less affected Steve Earle. Many bands jock Earle to a copycat degree nowadays, but Edgehill seems to put their own spin on the inspiration, mixing story songs with catchy pop dirges of love and loss. There are a few filler tracks, but not many. For example, I could have done without the platitudes of “Just Another Day” and the second version of “Justified,” one meant for radio play. —Jonathan Ashley - Louisville Eccentric Observer