In a world where many performers become musicians and are choreographed to fame by rich music executives, The Felice Brothers bring the raw style of early Bob Dylan back with a little extra trash added in for good measure. The three Felice brothers and their two friends, who hail from New York's Catskill Mountains, got their start playing in New York subway stations. This past spring, the band released their self-titled album.
The band describes their folk-twinged music as sounding like "a barn smells." The instrumentation even includes washboard at times, helping their songs tell stories. The self-titled album starts out slow, but picks up quickly with "Greatest Show on Earth" and "Frankie's Gun!"
"Frankie's Gun!" illustrates the band's ability to write songs that seem simple on the surface, but are filled with depth, images, alliteration and literary rhythms.
The album continues with some tunes reminiscent of Iron and Wine, catchy rag time, Dixieland piano ballads like "Take this Bread" and "Love Me Tenderly," but with the general feel and sound of Bob Dylan. Though the album begins to slow down a bit and become a bit folksier towards the end, it remains an interesting listen to the last note.
The Felice Brothers have very animated live shows and play many instruments, like accordion and organ, which you would not generally see in a live rock show. This past year, the band played at Bonaroo, Mountain Jam and the Newport Folk Festival, the site of Dylan's notorious turn to electric guitar. They will continue their very extensive tour with a stop at the Birchmere in Alexandria on Sept. 14. The Felice Brothers' raw, trashy quality make them very different from many of their contemporaries; their show would be a breath of fresh air for any music lover.
You can reach this staff writer at dstone@theeagleonline.com.
