Whistle Past The Grave
Self-Titled, 2023
10/10
Listen to Whistle Past The Grave
The multi-instrumentalist Aaron Skiles brings plenty of ‘90s grunge ideas into his vision of Americana on this 3rd solo album that welcomes Ben Bernstein, Taylor Hollingsworth, Alex Hillmer, Dermot Erwin, David Rabkin and Rebecca Skiles.
“Don’t Take It From Me” opens the listen vocally harmonic and musically crunchy with Bernstein’s thumping drums, while “Rubber Raft” brings plenty of guitar driven melodies to the thicker presence that benefits from Hollingsworth’s six string prowess.
In the middle, the lively and hard hitting “Ain’t Been Luck” also carries a bit of cautiousness thanks to Rabkin’s warm guitar and Rabkin’s agile drumming, while the gritty “Before Before” places Hillmer on lead guitar for the soaring guitar licks and dense rock of the album’s best.
The albums exits with “Whistle Past The Grave” and “Keep Me”, where the former balances substantial layers with powerful singing, and the latter finishes with an anthemic and raw energy that’s rugged and eloquent.
Skiles plays bass, percussion, piano, keys, guitars and, of course, sings, and the excellent company he’s in helps him flesh out a ‘90s alt-rock meets fuzzed out punk via a modern Americana twist that will make anyone an instant fan.
Travels well with: Nick Justice- Stranger In My Town; Parker Ferrell- Love Runs Through