As a member of the dB’s, Peter Holsapple is an indisputable heavyweight in the history of guitar pop, having made additional contributions to the scene as a member of the Continental Drifters and more recently, The Paranoid Style. He’s also releasing his third solo album The Face of 68 through Label 51 Recordings. It stretches the boundaries of the sound that’s commonly associated with Holsapple while retaining the recognizable characteristics that have defined his body of work. A limited vinyl pressing hit stores for Record Store Day with the full release available on April 18.
The Face of 68’s opener “Anytime Soon” is a tough rocker with a solid melodic underpinning and bold production including a few high tech spurts that land in the middle of the zone between gloss and static. The song connects as distinct from anything Holsapple’s done before, but it’s still familiar, in large part due to the songwriting and the sound of his voice, which is the first thing heard on the LP.
The album was recorded by the core trio of Robert Sledge (of the Ben Folds Five) on bass and Rob Ladd (of The Connells) on drums, and the songs often sport a hard rock edge. Still fibrous but with Holsapple playing all the instruments (including keyboard), the title track has a Link Wray-like foundation, but handles it subtly, as a pop sensibility comes to the fore.
“The Face of 68” does connect like it was assembled in the studio rather than honed in the practice space (not a knock), but then “Larger Than Life” follows with a muscular groove that might’ve succumbed to the hackneyed if the songwriting wasn’t so smart and Holsapple’s singing didn’t tap so nicely into that old school Southern College Rock tone. The late turn to the psychedelic is also a positive.
The band takes an even bigger hard rock swing with “My Idea #49,” a chunky mid-tempo with assorted studio inflections that help establish the set as the handiwork of producer Don Dixon, another veteran from the ’80s Southern scene. But with “High High Horse” the band shifts into a zone that’s a bit like Crowded House (or maybe even Squeeze) cutting a record at Muscle Shoals. The hard rock element is still present but far form the prevailing thrust, and that’s cool.
Also sweet is “That Kind of Guy,” a biting ode to the obsessive collector type, and then “See About You” unwinds like a late ’70s melodic rocker that could’ve landed on commercial radio, but with a guitar figure reminiscent of Steve Wynn circa The Dream Syndicate’s Medicine Show. “One for the Book” is a folk-rock strummer that enhances this Paisley Underground feel, and “Fireflies” ups the tempo as the song gets its hooks in.
The playing is appealing throughout and the lack of strain in the album’s construction is appreciated, but it’s ultimately the writing that is The Face of 68’s strongest quality. A disinterest in the safety of expectations highlights how Holsapple has stayed interesting for this long.
GRADED ON A CURVE:
A-
