Discovering a new indie artist is usually a treat. You not only get to hear new music, but hopefully, you get to meet, at least sonically, interesting new people. While LAST PARADE is long on the former they’re a bit short on the latter. So as a seasoned reviewer I’ll share with you what I have.
Last Parade’s latest CD, “Lead Me Home”, is a six song release that while having its roots firmly planted in both classic as well as alternative rock also explores elements of both country and western in addition to bluegrass music. Utilizing the standard rock ensemble of instruments (guitar, bass, drums, vocals and keyboards) it manages to do quite a lot with a little and does it very well!
Standout tracks on the record include “Wishful Thinking” which begins with simple finger picked acoustic guitar and voice (courtesy of the very talented Patrick Fisher) and slowly evolves into Beatlesque layered harmonies and interestingly synthesized keyboard sounds. It really brings to mind some of the great music made in the late sixties by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
“Carolina Concrete” also takes the scaled down approach of opening with only guitar and kick drum but is soon accompanied by bass, full drum kit and very nicely programmed, or performed, Latin ”cha-cha-cha!” percussion. It also features a very tasty eight-bar electric guitar solo that stands out because of its laid back approach that says more with less. At around the 2 ½ minute mark in the song the musicians wisely pick up the beat to a double time tempo that’s counterpointed by a starkly whistled melody until returning to the original tempo by the end of the tune.
If you’re looking for something in a waltz time then go no further than “Shape of Her Demise”. Piano, guitar, bass and drums in the intro are joined by staccato and pizzicato plucked strings and vox in the first verse. Once again the sheer simplicity of the compositions and arrangements are a refreshing breath of air in this day and age of mega-multilayer mixes and auto tuned tweaking that takes place on a regular basis in most recording studios.
The only problem I found with “Lead Me Home” is that leaves you wondering if Last Parade is really a group effort or just the work of the aforementioned Mr. Fisher and some studio musicians. Having done a bit of research on the players I really couldn’t find any upcoming shows scheduled which usually means it’s the work of a one-man-band instead of full band. Whichever the case I hope that the talent hidden behind the curtain will one day step out and finally introduce itself to the audience.
