American Music Club
Love Songs for Patriots
Mark Eitzel carved such a gloomy niche for himself that each peek at his morose world view sometimes proved too hard to take. That said, it’s great to hear Eitzel back in action with his band American Music Club on their first album in 10 years–especially considering “Love Songs for Patriots” ranks up there with the group’s best material. Playing rock with a distinctively jazzy sensibility, Eitzel and crew make the gloom and doom go down relatively easy, the swinging likes of “Ladies and Gentlemen,” “Only Love Can Set You Free” and the folk-tinged “Another Morning” smart, tuneful and sophisticated. There’s a political bent to the disc’s songs, too, but it is to Eitzel’s credit that he never descends to the level of screed.
Take away: Cult comeback
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Edited by Curt Wagner ([email protected]) and Kris Karnopp ([email protected])