THE WEBSITE: http://www.theyoungrepublic.net
YR BLOG: http://theyoungrepublic.wordpress.com
CONTACT
Please send all queries and comments to skymountainrecords@gmail.com
Bio: The Young Republic is a Nashville quintet, schooled at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and signed in Europe to End Of The Road Records. Since 2004, these highly skilled musicians have been praised by the likes of Mojo Magazine, The BBC and The Guardian for their extraordinary take on American Music. Classical training blends into a love of jazz, blues and folk and is all packaged in one hell of a rock n' roll band. Their new album Balletesque explores all the aforementioned territory and at points goes beyond to something unique to the group itself. Nashville players with conservatory training and a rock n' roll heart, The Young Republic is a band not to be missed.
BBC Review of BALLETESQUE
"An offering of Dickensian dimensions."
by Michael Quinn
Album number two from The Young Republic comes hot on the heels of the summer’s Recession Special EP and sees the Tennessee six-piece surviving a change of drummer in late 2008.
Balletesque pirouettes with an almost nonchalant ease through shadow-cast, menace-edged tales of errant salesmen, bootleggers, preachers, outlaws and assorted misfits, all of whom are brought to flesh-and-blood life against a pointedly assembled backdrop of musical references.
Dotted with jazz-like details and classically-accented interludes – the overture-like Introduction; the operatic intensity of Tidal Wave; the razor-edged violin in The Alchemist – it’s an offering of Dickensian dimensions, richly populated, ripely moral and redolently delineated in Julian Saporiti’s lyrical, narrative-driven novellas-in-song.
As skilfully stitched together as 2008’s 12 Tales From Winter City, this new offering is no less smoothly executed although the edges are deliberately rougher – Rose Parade’s stabbing percussion and slicing guitar chords; the take-no-prisoners assault of the title track – and, in the deceptively languid Autumns in the Trees, also noticeably rawer.
Embracing old and new influences – from Dylan and late, Lennon-led Beatles to Pixies and Arcade Fire, with The Wolf conjuring up the sort of combustible commotion you might expect from The Raconteurs – The Young Republic’s subtle borrowings and hidden homages play out against a larger, intricately designed canvas that makes significant claims for a band whose time has come.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LIVE REVIEW (The Daily Growl, London, Nov 2nd)
This is the sound of a band growing up and getting better and better.
It’s the sound of a band who despite a quiet Monday gig on a slow London evening, give it their all.
It’s the sound of a band who know that classical training and expert musicianship may not count for much in today’s fickle music world, but are able to harness their considerable powers to rock and roll like bastards.
It’s the sound of a band so confident in their abilities, that they know they can hold the crowd rapt and silent listening to an awesome violin solo, before the rest of The Alchemist crashes in with an almighty bang.
It’s the sound of a band who actually knows how to use a violin - not just laying long notes on top of rock tunes to add gravitas, but a brilliantly-played instrument as an integral and vital part of their sound.
It’s the sound of a band who happily communicate their influences - The Beatles, Dylan, classic country and blues, and Tom Waits, the last of which comes across more clearly to me than ever before, not just in the music but as the lead singer Julian Saporiti rasps and throws contorted body shapes.
Speaking of whom, it’s the sound of a band who have found their voice through an excellent frontman who seems more comfortable in that role every time I see him. Someone who knows that getting an audience behind you isn’t just about the banter (though he can do that) - it’s about putting on a great performance.
It’s the sound of a band so at ease in their new clothes that they can take some old, more indie-pop inclined tunes and dress them up as cowboys. Girl From The Northern States sounds mighty fine in C&W garb, and Excuses To See You has never sounded more like Return of the Grievous Angel. This is a good thing.
It’s a sound of a band who know how to cover The Beatles properly. But then if you think they’re just playing too straight a homage, they can also do the theme to Ghostbusters, complete with support band Don’t Move on accordion and dance moves, and pull it off nicely. Smiles all round.
Best of all, it’s the sound of a band who have moved on, found their groove and become a proper band. tight and focused, but also clearly having fun. They rule.
6cc7beb15c3c31f6137643c70b13da15
