Another album that I really really like is Southeast Engine’s new album A Wheel Within A Wheel. I do (however) have a confession to make. This record was (very unfortunately) sitting in my “to listen to” pile for far too long before I pulled it out and digitized it for my portable consumption and I’m very glad I finally did so. The first, striking thing that entered my mind only moments into the album opener “Taking the Fall,” was, “I don’t remember Southeast Engine rocking this much on their last album.” And indeed they didn’t.
Southeast Engine’s last album Coming To Terms With Gravity was a pretty good record in its own right, but I don’t recall liking it nearly as much as this new one. Sure, the band still doles out the same sort of alt-country/roots rock that graced their last album, but there is something more aggressive and fervent about A Wheel Within A Wheel. Southeast Engine hasn’t abandoned their sound but they have certainly tweaked it. The pianos, guitars, drums, bass, and other instruments are packed tighter even if the playing is loose and organic.
Singer/songwriter Adam Remnant’s lyrics are literate, raggedly spiritual, and (obviously) influenced by the band’s Athens, Ohio home. Its almost as if he’s desperately grasping for something to help him make sense of the things that surround him. There is a palpable weight and a dense noisiness to the album that (when coupled with singer Remnant’s vocals) often recalls Wilco before they started twiddling knobs and listening to Krautrock. So what does that mean?
It all adds up to the fact that A Wheel Within A Wheel is a really good album that I would recommend to fans of Wilco, Okkervil River, and Red Red Meat. And while you are enjoying the latest from Southeast Engine, I’ll add another one to my list of great records from 2007 that I missed the boat on. Get it now from Misra Records.
MP3 | Southeast Engine – Pursuit Of Happiness, Pt. 1 A Wheel Within A Wheel
MP3 | Southeast Engine – Taking The Fall A Wheel Within A Wheel
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