West Coast Sound
Yampa, 2015
10/10
The Los Angeles artist Chris Laterzo knows his way around a folk, rock and alt-country tune, and on this 5th album his band, Buffalo Robe, and plenty of guest musicians are along for the very entertaining ride.
Laterzo starts the listen with the rugged yet tuneful title track where his inimitable vocals draws some comparisons to Roy Orbison as the song unfolds with a cowboy-esque feeling, and “Tumbleweed” follows with a warm, immediately gripping alt-country spirit that’s a bit twangy and with no shortage of grit.
In the middle, “Someday Blue” is an expressive acoustic strummer that’s reflective and moving, while “Echo Park” recruits keys in its rootsy nature that’s got some honky tonk fun. “Subaru”, one of the album’s best, then brings crunchy guitar to the anthemic folk-rocker.
The remaining 2 tracks don’t disappoint either, and include the more tense setting of “The Ray Bradbury”, where Laterzo’s versatile pipes are on display amid rugged harmonies, and “Chaperone” exits the listen in ballad territory as an acoustic guitar and Laterzo’s stirring pipes mix with the perfect balance of playfulness and emotion.
Laterzo makes quite an impression in just over 30 minutes here, where nods to the Laurel Canyon Sound are present, not to mention some Neil Young influence. Ultimately, and this is really quite rare in a very crowded area, he brings a very unique talent to Americana songwriting that you’ll want to revisit again and again.
Travels well with: Lee Gallagher And The Hallelujah- L.A. Yesterday; Ted Russell Kamp- Down In The Den