AUK’s Monthly EP’s Round-Up – September 2024

You can tell it’s September. Not simply because the leaves on the trees have changed their colour from a soft vivid green to a somewhat crisper and golden spectacle, already forming a carpet on the ground. Nor is it simply the sudden change in temperature, a drop of over ten degrees in a matter of days forcing a whole new attire, marking the end of the salad days of summer, though for those who live to the North and West, you may argue that summer never really arrived. No. you can tell it’s September because it’s time for the next edition of the ‘Monthly EP’s Round-Up’, and though slightly down on numbers this month, with just the five, there’s no shortage on quality. So with no further waffling from me, let’s get started.

To kick things of this month we have Canadian quintet The Sheepdogs and their new five track EP “Paradise Alone”, that heralds in their first full independent release since leaving Warner Music Canada, and setting up their own label ‘Right On Records’. Other than that little has changed, with the band’s signature sound of seventies Southern Rock reassuringly as vibrant and fresh as it’s ever been. Opening track, and first single taken from the EP’, is ‘Take Me For A Ride’, delivering a perfect slice of blues rock boogie in a similar vein to such veritable seventies acts Foghat, and fellow Canadians Bachman Turner Overdrive. Elsewhere ‘Darlin Baby’, which includes the line that makes up the title of the EP, slows things down with a slice of West Coast soft rock, akin to Poco or the poppier side of The Eagles, who could also be a touchstone for the track ‘Let Me In’, with its country rock edge, sweet harmonies and lyrical refrain “to old to drive, to young to die”, all delivered in a fashion that recalls the classic track ‘James Dean’. The two standout tracks here are ‘My Baby’, and ‘POS’, with the melodic interplay of the twin guitars and Currie’s vocals drawing favourable comparison to the legendary Allman Brother Band. In truth there is nothing new here, nor would you really expect there to be after twenty years, but what there is, is delivered with the highest level of compassion and integrity, and from The Sheepdogs you’d rightly expect nothing less.

Next up we have the new six-track EP ‘Weary’ from one of Liverpool’s finest songwriters of recent years, John Jenkins. Having made his name with local post-punk bands of the eighties, The Persuaders and Come In Tokio, Jenkins returned to the music scene back in 2015 with a set of songs more rooted to the singer-songwriter medium so enjoyed by the americana music fraternity. His sixth and most recent album “Tuebrook”, came out last year receiving high praise from these pages with our very own Paul Russell stating “Jenkins is fast becoming one of Liverpool’s most respected singer songwriters”.  The six tracks on this new EP, sees Jenkins revisiting the tracks that didn’t make the cut for the last album, not because they weren’t good enough but simply because they didn’t suit the album’s intimate arrangement. Nothing emphasises that point more than the EP’s title track and opening number, for though it starts with all the gently simplicity that marked “Tuebrook” out as one of last years highlights, with acoustic guitar and vocals caressing the airwaves, the track subtly moves through the gears, building to a crescendo, complete with a horn section and stunning backing vocals from Helen Shanley that lifts the track to a rousing gospel finale. Absolutely breathtaking, and one of the best tracks I’ve heard all year. The remaining five tracks have all been released this year as singles and though not as grandiose as the title track, each track maintains the quality, especially the wistful ‘Do You Ever Think Of Me’, the high tension of ‘I Don’t Want To Be That Guy’, and personal favourite ‘The Reason’, that showcases Jenkins mastery of the reflective lyrical narrative. Collecting these tracks all together on one EP, marks “Weary”, out as a must have and comes highly recommended.

“The Otherside Of Everything” is the debut EP from Boston based quintet Nate Perry & Ragged Company, which delivers five tracks that takes the campfire storytelling ethos of alt-country and ramps it up into rock ‘n’ roll’ overdrive. Formed by Perry in 2018 after he had left the army and returned to his native New England, getting together with guitarist Mike Chandler, bass player Connor Milligan, drummer Sam Demello, and keyboard player Ollie Nash, to deliver their own brand of high-octane alternative rock, full of strong melodies and fist-pumping choruses. Opening number ‘Maria’, embodies the very ethos of the band, with Perry’s passionate vocals and Chandler’s stinging guitar solo positioning their sound in a similar area to the Gaslight Anthem or even Blacksmoke Cherry just minus the southern accent. Following tracks ‘All I Need’, and ‘Another Day’, continue at a gallop, each with their own infectious chorus, before the radio-friendly ‘Evergreens’ offers a slight change of pace. The EP finishes with the heavy blues of ‘Preacher’, which draws comparison to the iconic rock bands of the seventies such as Bad Company.

Taylor McCall has gradually been building a strong reputation within the Americana music scene with his third album “Mellow War” released earlier this year to much critical praise along with the extra exposure of supporting Robert Plant’s latest project, Saving Grace. The EP entitled “The Porch Sessions”, sees Taylor revisit four of the tracks from this years album with a more stripped back delivery that attempts to break down the veil that the studio creates and bring the listener closer to the heart of each track. Now having lived with the album for many weeks at the time of its release back in March I had been struck by it’s intimacy, so I was curious to hear how much more could be revealed by these primarily acoustic interpretations, and in truth the answer is not a lot. Yes, the tracks are minus their percussive heartbeat, minus the keys that supplied the subtle depth and minus the sweetness of the backing vocals, which undoubtedly helps to create a different ambience for these four tracks. However, what you get in place is more difficult to identify, with the only significant variation to the opening track ‘Rolling stoned Again’ being an extended guitar solo outro that expands the track by well over a minute. The remaining three tracks, ‘Mellow War’, ‘I Want You Still’, and ‘Rest On Easy’, are all wonderful songs, but again apart from being slightly longer than their album version very little extra is revealed, though the latter does have a delightful guitar solo midway through. The problem is that the songs from the album benefited massively from the subtle and sympathetic production that exquisitely supported each track, there was nothing to obstruct the listener from embracing the structure of each song, in fact, one would be bold enough to suggest that all the arrangement did was gently caress the songs and deliver them in the best possible light. The EP, by taking almost everything away, has perversely created a void that feels less intimate and adds nothing to the listening experience in comparison to the album versions. However, they are all great songs regardless, and those who already have the album may enjoy the alternative stripped back takes more than I, but for those who haven’t I strongly suggest skipping the EP and going straight for the album.

Now normally each month I would save the best for last, but there is so little to chose between all five releases here that I have chosen instead to award the honour to a new act who have previously not appeared in these hallowed pages. The band are The Cain Pit, a quintet from Norwich (UK), whose music combines a unique mix of alt-country, bluegrass and punk, which they have christened ‘Punkgrass’. The band are made up of Daryl Blyth vocals and double bass, Scott Blyth guitar, Isaac Crass banjo, Joe Halliday acoustic guitar and harmonica, and Jamie Tritton drums, and though the band have only been performing together for a short time they have quickly made a name for themselves on the live circuit including The Red Rooster Festival, and have recently released their first EP entitled “Sorrow”. The five tracks here perfectly capture the bands high energetic approach, opening with ‘Alder’, that regales the pitfalls of spending the evening in a local dive bar, through to the mid-paced stomp of the final track ‘Roses’ which gained over 9,000 plays within 24 hours across social platforms. If this EP is anything to by then The Cain Pit are band we’re all going to be hearing a lot more about.