Our Rating: 7 out of 9 stars
Imagine if the Beatles had stayed together and none of them died,
continuing to pursue the limits of pop music. They, like LambBone
(http://www.lambbone.com) on "Wild Man," would probably
remain slightly retro with their melodic instincts yet open to
incorporating other styles, such as jazz, world music, funk, and
even progressive rock.
Such is the fate of LambBone
that they (or he, as in John Lamb) cannot be properly defined
at a period in music history that requires artists to be strictly
placed in a corner. At one point, Lamb is singing a slow piano
piece with the same blue-moon reflection of the Counting Crows
on "Hero" and then wailing on a "Lawyer" with
a kazoo and stingingly funny lyrics. And let's not forget the
opening title song with its jumpy island drums, jazzy textures,
and extraterrestrial keyboards.
But it was only 30 or so years ago that artists were encouraged
to take courageous leaps of faith that Lamb does here. Inspired
by the Beatles' revolutionary late '60s work, not having any creative
limitations was considered damn cool, which is why you had Led
Zeppelin flirting with folk and blues while dropping heavy metal
wherever they went.
Because of his piano playing,
Lamb will probably be compared to Billy Joel, early Billy Joel,
but certainly not Elton John. While I can't see the masses gravitating
towards this stuff, a cult following - maybe he can call them
the Chops of Lamb - shouldn't be far behind.
author: Adam Harrington
LambBone’s ‘Wild Man’ is
a wildly eclectic brew of jazz, funk, and blues
July 3, 2008 by kyrbyraine
Reviewed by Kit Burns of Overground Underground
LambBone/Wild Man
You can almost compare LambBone, otherwise known as John Lamb, to Ben Folds. The piano-based rock is a dead giveaway to one of Lamb’s major influences, not to mention some of the caustic lyrics, such as those found on “News.” But while Folds is often tightly knit with his alternative roots, Lamb knows no boundaries, shuffling the deck with pinches of jazz, Latin music, funk, psychedelia, and blues. LambBone is so eclectic that a new term needs to be defined for music that crosses borders in such a schizophrenic fashion. Surprisingly, LambBone’s stylistic derring-do is not confusing at all; this isn’t the mad creativity of Frank Zappa on the loose but rather a gifted, versatile musician utilizing all of his strengths.
At times, especially on the title track, “One of the These Nights,” and “Cleveland Blues,” Lamb recalls Joe Jackson in his late ’70s-early ’80s prime. While the tracks don’t have the kinetic energy of Jackson’s vintage bile, Lamb’s voice is reminiscent of Jackson’s in his more mellow moments. Jackson, too, was a rock & roll iconoclast, leaping from genre to genre with every succeeding album. Lamb takes it a step further, doing all of that on the same record. “Be My Girl” has a soft, jazzy foundation while the satirical “Lawyer” would make Randy Newman proud with its pointed wit.
http://www.lambbone.com
It took me a couple of spins to get the hang of LambBone. The self-proclaimed Wild Man of the title, John Lamb isn’t kidding around. Wild Man sounds like what Steely Dan would’ve recorded under the influence of some Summer of Love fumes. Lamb is out of control, slapping together parts of jazz, psychedelia (check out the spaced-out Moog on the title track), Beatles-esque classic rock, Latin pop, and funk. Yet, somehow, someway, Lamb manages to weave the car crash together into a quirky one-man symphony. And who said rock & roll has lost its power to stun, to surprise?
Thankfully, Wild Man is no exercise in studio-musician excess. Lamb isn’t throwing everything into the mix but the kitchen sink just for the sake of it. There are some terrific songs hiding beneath Lamb’s seemingly experimental collages of rhythm and melody. The enigmatic “Object of Desire” has an infectiously toe-tapping beat while the kiss-off “News” disguises its knife-sharp words with percolating tropical grooves. Even the instrumental, “John’s Theme,” moves the heart as well as the mind. It might take a little patience, but Wild Man rewards the ears with every listen.
http://www.lambbone.com