3 out of 5

Label: Road Cone

Producer: Brian Deck, Tim Hurley

Hm and harumph.  I think all of my memories of Califone might be tied to their first EP, because revisiting this one is already exposing some of the elements that allow my attentions to wander… namely production fun taking a backseat to folk, which is all fine and good for you Americana chaps, but I guess I was just so Awesomed by RRM’s last album and the Flydaddy Califone EP that I’ve never gotten over it.  However, I dig the Deceleration albums, so perhaps I’ll find more nuance as I go along, because part of the lack of impressiveness of this effort is its shortness… it doesn’t really have much chance to tell you what it’s all about.  Opener ‘Electric Fence’ is a pretty successful start, though, bringing back in the electronic shuffle and twang as Rutili hums and moans atop.  But there is a shift – the vocals are a bit more present and clear, and the harsh kitchensink clatter is a bit more tuneful, flowing with the song instead of pulsing for control.  Track 2’s ‘St. Martha Let It Fold’ is a crisp gem of folk, with surprisingly followable lyrics and wonderful echoes added to the strum and pluck of guitar.  It would be a brighter gem if ‘Don’t Let Me Die Nervous,’ two tracks later, didn’t follow almost exactly the same template, just a couple keys higher.  In the middle of the disc we have ‘Beneath the Yachtsman,’ which starts off interestingly but never adds any twists or turns, and closer ‘Dock Boggs’ is a similar one concept sort of affair, except minus the words.

It sounds like I’m super down on this, but no – I’m just disappointed when listening to it against the previous release.  Which also had a ton of repetition, but it played it up for a drone effect successfully, whereas [EP] wants to be separate songs but somewhat blends together.  Whittled down to a single or 7″, there’s some great material here, and any given song on its own is notable, and still for sure sounds like Califone.  But putting it all together isn’t enough runtime for the band to work into a groove, nor are the latter tracks distinct enough to make hitting repeat a necessity.