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Shovels & Rope consists of two artists with music careers prior to joining forces. Cary Ann Hearst is an acclaimed singer/songwriter who has been featured on NPR’s Weekend Edition and had her song “Hell Bells” used in HBO’s True Blood. Michael Trent is a celebrated solo artist and the former singer/guitarist of band The Films. O’ Be Joyful is a raw, honest, gritty offering with pure energy, distinctive harmonies and stellar songwriting.
Fantastic. See them live. Take a chance on this disc. You will enjoy it.These two have the art of entertainment down pat. They are upbeat, energetic, lively, and incredibly talented singers, songwriters, and instrumentalists. As well as a couple of super cool, down-to-earth, accessible people. The music is folk-rock, as many instruments as a two-(wo)man band can muster in a song. They write striking lyrics, funny lyrics, plain old folk stories. Lots of songs about outlaws. And who doesn’t like a song about outlaws?
Shovels and Rope rock My wife and I saw Shovels and Rope last night (August 3, 2012) at the Mural Amphitheatre in Seattle. I’d purchased O’ Be Joyful to get ready for the show. I loved this album instantly. And I almost never say that. However, as great as the album is, their live performance was even better. I see a lot of shows. But these two were at the top of my list.
A Rare Brew from Hearst and Trent O’ BE JOYFUL is way up on our shortlist of great gifts for the season. Ever listen to a song and you pretty much know what’s going to happen next? That NEVER happens on this album, not once. Killer vocal harmonies, New Orleans brass meets generosity along the grassy, hill-country backroads of Mississippi, unfolding choruses, songs that capture the sweetness and chaos of lived-in relationships, arrangements that only follow ebbs and flows of spirit — do have to go on? The songwriting chops of Cary Ann Hearst feel like they were born in a bottomless well. In shades both precious and sultry, she sings lines like “You gotta copperhead kiss hidden up your sleeve” as if they were throwaways, and the melding of her voices with partner Michael Trent render grit and lilies into the miraculous. Buy this album! –Stephen Eric Berry, SwarfBomb Records, LLC, Ann Arbor, MI.