Album Review: Robert Earl Keen – The Rose Hotel
Posted on | September 29, 2009 | 1 Comment
1. The more records that Robert Earl Keen makes, the more he shows of his true self. Not that Keen has ever pretended to be anyone else, but on his latest, The Rose Hotel, it all comes together – his observational storytelling and his appreciation of small parts of life, all wrapped in a gorgeous, shimmering sound.
2. The opening title track tells the story of missed love in Keen’s own granular way (read more on this track here). Like his friend Lyle Lovett, Robert Earl understands how to write around the story and reveal an extra layer of insight into the actual events. On “The Man Behind the Drums”, Keen’s band finds themselves at one of Levon Helm’s legendary Midnight Rambles. Keen lauds the drummer by telling how they ended up “hangin from the rafters, singin every song” — emphasizing the effect rather than the source.
3. His outside approach to storytelling occasionally strays into explorations of the absurd. Robert Earl understands that small towns can be incredibly surreal. A story about a drunk who can’t seem to get his jokes right, “10,000 Chinese Walk Into a Bar” follows the psychedelic bent of recent tracks like “Farm Fresh Onions” and “The Great Hank” with Keen bringing in Billy Bob Thornton to help him illuminate a scene like something out of The Last Picture Show. “Village Inn” justifies Keen’s self-anointed genre of “Best Western music”, describing the simple existence of a small motel in Challis, Idaho, with “free wi-fi and HBO” — a fascination that continues on the rollicking “Wireless In Heaven”, a ridiculous yet overwhelmingly enjoyable romp about technology in the afterlife.
4. Lloyd Maines’ production provides a sparkling unifying sound that makes this whole record work together. Keen’s professed enthusiasm for rhythm and harmony vocals led Maines to create a layered sound that proves the perfect setting for his reedy voice — matching him with Drew Womack on he loping “On and On” (which references Keen’s cowboy hero Marty Robbins) and Greg Brown’s quivering baritone on “Laughing City”. Maines gives Keen’s cover of “Flying Shoes” a thumping arrangement that retains the haunting feeling of Townes Van Zandt’s original, and kicks off “Something I Do” with a double-take of a drum loop that blossoms quickly into one of the record’s best songs.
5. Robert Keen has explored a few different sounds in his career. His debut No Kinda Dancer wore his folkier influences (Steve Fromholz, Guy Clark) on his sleeve, while 1997’s slick Picnic has been panned by the artist himself. As he progresses further into his career, the strength of his songwriting only increases, earning Keen the opportunity to explore new sonic ground. The Rose Hotel finds him fearless and in fine form.
Robert Earl Keen – Something I Do
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September 30th, 2009 @ 2:39 pm
Jeff – man, I really like your blog. Thanks for letting us know about it on the ND texas thing. I will be reading it often…good reviews btw
Brad Boyer from Country Store Buffalo