| T Bird and the Breaks |
| Written by Dante Dominick | |
|
What the Austin 11-piece lacks in pigment, they make up for in hard-knox chops and showmanship. The latter of which vocalist Tim Crane (aka T Bird), in the soul shouter vein, has by the bucket load. The difficult task of translating their energy to disc was handled well by the band; their appropriately titled debut, Learn About It, is a nine-song scorcher. They stayed more in the soul and funk categories in the studio, but the pure R&B moments are among the standouts. “Blackberry Brandy” is the album’s money shot. Music collectors hearing this for the first time will feel certain this is a rare, B-side from the ‘50s that the overnight DJ at a Chicago or New Orleans public radio station pulled out from their personal collection. The sparse choruses churned on by Sam Patlove’s (Sammy P) doo-wop rhythm guitar and Crane’s personality are greeted by a chorus of drunken horns and honeydripper, Raelettes-style backup vocals (Stephanie Hunt, Sasha Ortiz, Jazz Mills, who shine throughout). The rousing tide is enough to make you think the itinerant louse has the best idea on how to weather this economy. The sexual overtones of “Juice” are almost as evident in drummer Damian Llanes’ dirty, chicken-scratch funk beat as they are in Crane and his female singers’ repetitive pleading to give up the juice with no holding back. “Take Time” could be mistaken for a Wilson Pickett number; Llanes’ rhythm again sets the ass-shaking tone and Crane as the shouter is at his best here, as is the back and forth between the girls. With all the soulful shimmy, T Bird and the Breaks know to be a R&B band worth a pinch of salt, they have to nail the tender moments. While we’re not talking Otis Redding territory here yet, the band definitely nails it during “All the Blame” and “Sunday On My Own.” The latter is the album’s closer and the better of the two, one of the best cuts on the collection in fact. It leaves you wanting two things: more of these R&B moments, and just more, period. |
