Blue Mountain reviewed
Blue Mountain
Midnight In Mississippi/Omnibus
(Broadmoor)
Reunited and reconstituted with a new drummer, Blue Mountain double dips with a fresh album and a re-recorded mix of old “hits.”
Appearing: Thursday, October 9th at Schubas in Chicago.
No breakup is taken too seriously these days, though the divorce of Cary Hudson and Laurie Stirratt (twin sis of Wilco’s John) seemed to drive a stake into the band, which appeared on the second-ever issue of alt-country bulletin No Depression. The persistent folks at St. Louis’ Twangfest convinced it to reconvene for a festival, however, and, well, Hudson had been working on some songs . . .
Omnibus, the re-recorded portion, had the potential to be a bald-faced cash-in, but time apart and flashy recording equipment fail to derail the rootsy chug of “Sleeping In My Shoes” and “Generic America.” Backed by the folksy warmth of “Myrna Lee” and “Wink,” it’s tough to discern why Uncle Tupelo hit home and Blue Mountain was forced to hit the pavement.
Unfortunately, releasing Omnibus and Mississippi side-by-side disservices the latter. The new album goes wrong because it doesn’t feel lived in, a result not just of the chill between Hudson and Stirratt, but a general inconsistency in the material. “Pretty Please” hits all the right frontporch-love-song points, from Hudson’s no-one’s-listening delivery to the skillful but non-obtrusive presence of organ and Dobro. The title track is a Truckers-worthy road scorcher, fighting to sustain a buzz during too many late nights and too few sell-outs. Conversely, “Groove Me,” “Gentle Soul,” “Rainy Day,” and “She’s A Wild One” haven’t cooked long enough, and feel as deep as the surfaces they only skim. Alt-country-by-numbers has never been a successful approach, but at least Blue Mountain has numbers again.
— Steve Forstneger
