Small Town Heroes [Pink Acid Wash LP]

by Hurray for the Riff Raff

Overview

On the title cut of Small Town Heroes, Alynda Lee Segarra, the mastermind (and sometimes sole member) behind ramshackle New Orleans-based folk ensemble Hurray for the Riff Raff, wrestles with the fallout of a relationship gone sour over a single finger-picked guitar paired with the slow, distant freight train hum of a Hammond B-3, and reaches a simple, well-weathered conclusion; "I tempted fate, and I acted smart/I grew some callous on my heart". Segarra's take on the Big Easy, and dusty, boxcar Americana in general, is hardly groundbreaking, but her sonorous and soulful voice, and her ability to weave a real sense of place and emotional authenticity into well-worn folk motifs make for a compelling listen, especially when she peppers the familiar with a pinch or two of subversion. Both "Crash on the Highway" and "The Body Electric" are built upon a foundation of tumbleweed-strewn, dust bowl fatalism, but the former turns tragedy into amusing tour diary fodder ("We can't make it to our gig on time"), and the latter offers a up a smart, feminist take on the traditional murder ballad ("Like an old sad song, you heard it all before/Deliah's gone but I'm settling the score"). Throughout it all Segarra struts her stuff without the slightest bit of arrogance (most of the arrangements are spare, but never willfully so), offering up a confident, yet ultimately amiable set of millennial-informed, urban crafted, Woody Guthrie-inspired, contemporary hobo-folk anthems that play fast and loose with genre tropes without losing the essence that makes them universal. ~ James Christopher Monger

Product Details

Release Date:	11/15/2024
Label:	Ato Records
UPC:	0880882641412

Tracks

1. Blue Ridge Mountain
2. Crash On The Highway
3. Good Time Blues (An Outlaw's Lament)
4. End Of The Line
5. The New SF Bay Blues
6. The Body Electric
7. No One Else
8. St. Roch Blues
9. Levon's Dream
10. I Know It's Wrong (But That's Alright)
11. Small Town Heroes
12. Forever Is Just A Day

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Hurray for the Riff Raff   Primary Artist
A.P. Baer   Guitar (Electric),Banjo,Dobro
Alynda Lee Segarra   Harmonica,Guitar,Vocals
Dan Cutler   Bass (Acoustic),Bass (Electric)
Sam Doores   Drums,Guitar,Vocals,Harmonica,Slide Guitar,Guitar (Electric)
Micah Hulscher   Piano
Casey McAllister   Organ,Piano,Accordion,Harpsichord,Piano Strings,Guitar (Acoustic)
Emily Nelson   Cello
Yosi Perlstein   Clogs,Drums,Fiddle,Violin,Percussion
Avery Bright   Viola
Matt Nelson   Cello
Ben Tremble   Slide Guitar
Charles Garmendia   Drums
Zack Stetchfield   Slide Guitar

Technical Credits

Andrew Bizer   Direction
Dan Cutler   Harmony,Vocal Arrangement
Paul Lingerfelt   Photography
Sam Doores   Harmony,Composer,Additional Production
Jesse Fuller   Composer
Casey McAllister   Design
John Baldwin   Mastering
Andrija Tokic   Mixing,Engineer
Scott Guion   Cover Painting
Alynda Lee Segarra   Mixing,Composer,Producer
Yosi Perlstein   Advisor
A.P. Baer   Harmony