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Hard-driving roots-based Americana from the lost highway.

5 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Americana, ROCK: Roots Rock



Details:
Ben Ratliff''s EP "Misplaced Desire" is a double-barrelled blues shotgun, powered equally by Ratliff''s icy baritone vocals and his and Jeff Winter''s chunky guitar riffs, with support from a solid rhythm section and production that strikes a good balance between clean and moody.

Ratliff''s raw, rootsy sound comes out of city and country blues traditions, but the songwriting takes in other forms, from the heavy-metal drawl of "Leviathan" - an apocalyptic indictment of the Bush oiligopoly - to the bluesy tango of the closer "You Never Miss:"

You were trouble, I might have guessed
A Jezebel in a cocktail dress...
On the outside, a southern belle
With a tongue fired up in hell
I beg and plead for one more kiss
You know I''m always like this
Cause you never miss

Ratliff maintains his grim energy through the minor-key blues of "Permanent Midnight," which has a Ray Wylie Hubbard vibe, the lost-love lyrics of the chunky country waltz "Time Slips Away," and the insistent beat of the original folk-ballad "My Dayz" where Ratliff''s vocals seem to channel Ian Anderson at his wryest.

Highly recommended for roots-music fans everywhere.

--Jon Sobel, https://www.tradebit.com


Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Ben Ratliff rolls out a new EP recorded in the summer of 2003. This is Ben''s first solo release with a band, featuring five fresh tracks in the rock vein. While his work with Sexfresh traversed a number of musical genres, "Misplaced Desire" sits firmly in the rock realm, making a pit stop in country with the song "Time Slips Away," and dipping a toe in the lounge world with the track "You Never Miss." The lead track, "Leviathan" -- sort of a cross between Bob Dylan''s "Masters of War" and Blue Oyster Cult''s "Godzilla" -- offers a metaphorical analysis of the Bush administration and its fear-mongering modus operandi. The rock is heartfelt and the production is top-notch. You won''t be disappointed.

-- Jason Felmore, Humbucker Magazine

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File Size: 18.1 MBytes