  
The life and times of the Brothers Hogg come from the Grimsby/Cleethorpes area. They describe themselves as "Original/Acoustic/Roots band", which I have to say isn't a particularly helpful description - after all every band tries to be original (apart from covers bands). Acoustic is descriptive but doesnt really narrow down what sort of music they play, just what they play the songs with, so that just leaves Roots to describe what they play. Roots music can cover a wide range of music including folk, traditional, Americana and more, so it doesn't narrow it down much but on the other hand this is a band that don't really fit neatly into a single genre. There is certainly a large element of folk music as well as traditional, but there are other influences mixed in too - the banjo used in 'The lover and the thief' for instance has more of an American sound than British folk.
I saw this band at the Bearded Theory festival and they sounded great live, so I was looking forward to listening to their album, and it certainly doesnt disappoint.
Brief comments on a few tracks..
'10,000 miles' is a traditional song also known as 'The lovers farewell' and the band have done a great version here.
'Dragon' is one of my favourites on the album (second only to 'Jerusalem/I will survive' for me). The vocals as with most of the album are male and in this song they just sound superb - slightly mournful and full of character. It's quite a slow paced song and just sounds great.
The next song 'Future blues' picks the pace up significantly and the banjo gives it a lighter feel. It's nothing like what I'd expected from a song with the word Blues in the title, but it's another great track
One thing I noticed when I saw the band play live was that Nena chooses not to use drumsticks but instead plays with brushes which gives a very different sound, and nowhere is it clearer than in 'Ad infinitum / Maths song' where the drum sound is very clear, and I think it works better with these songs than the much harder louder sound from drum sticks.
What can I say about 'Jersualem/I will survive' ? It seems like a very strange idea to pair one of the best known hymms around with a 70s disco anthem - ok it sounds insane, but it's been done brilliantly and works amazingly well. It's performed as gentle acoustic guitar plus female vocals from Nena Mager. Her voice is lovely and works perfectly for this song. It's largely the lyrics to Jerusalem, but then the band have replaced some of them with some of their own, and then added a bit from 'I will survive'. A great track, and a highlight of the album in my opinion.
A great album that's well worth a listen.
Track listing:
1. Lunacy of Laudanum
2. The holy trinity
3. Ad Infinitum / Maths song
4. 10,000 miles
5. Dragon
6. Future blues
7. 044
8. The dead and me
9. Drinkin' song
10. The Hawk and the wren (and those ants that made men)
11. Jerusalem/I will survive
12. The lover and the thief
13. Josephine
14. Murder ballad #4
The life and times of the brothers Hogg are:
Daz Capp
Simon Huxford
Shane Thornberry
Nena Mager
Abi Knevett |
