Elliott Brood
Work and Love
Reviewed by: Brian Roser
This is the latest album from the Canadian country music band and it is quite good, but there is something that keeps it from being great. At first, it was hard to put my finger on what it was. It wasn’t the music itself; the three band members, Mark Sasso, Casey Laforet and Stephen Pitkin are perfectly capable with their instruments. There are no sour notes or missed beats; they play with precision and passion. It wasn’t the singing, the lead vocals came through as weather beaten, but not harsh, like bourbon-soaked gravel. It wasn’t a lack of experience, as this group has been around for over a decade. It wasn’t lack of variety; the band goes from nostalgic to mellow to upbeat, while providing a musical through-line that keeps the changes from being too jarring.
In the end, and I know this isn’t fair to say, but I think it’s because they’re Canadian. Country music is about pain and loss, so how can you sing country music when your country has free health care? Your lyrics would run something like this: ‘Our little Timmy fell down the well, but he barely got wet before the mounties rescued him. We didn’t have a penny to our name, but the doctors fixed him right up because we live in a socialist society.’ There is even a song on the album, “Each Other’s Kids”, about how a small town takes care of each other. From birth to death everyone looks after everyone else. That’s communism!
Work and Love is a fine addition to Elliott Brood’s oeuvre. It provides poetic lyrics and an easy listening style. There is nothing wrong with the album per se, but it does lack a certain… what’s redneck for je ne sais quoi?
Rating: Listenable
