The first time I had any contact with The Redwalls was via a promotional photograph for their major label debut album, De Nova. The band had elected to visualize themselves as the Beatles for the 2000s, which to me seemed dated and old. I mean, many critics certainly felt that way when the Knack did the same thing in 1979! As you can imagine, that faux pas was a serious obstacle to my purchasing De Nova, and predictably, I passed. With the Redwalls’ third album dropping into my lap, somewhat - it’s time for humble pie and a steady diet of my own words. This eponymous album certainly nods to decades past -- the early 70s specifically -- but it more than does credit to that heady decade with songs that will simply blow you away. Less Beatlesque and more reflective of Stones and Springsteen influences, the edgier sound and singer Logan Baren’s lusty, raucous larynx has worked wonders to deliver one of the stronger albums in 2007. And with memorable tracks like the defiant “Modern Diet,” the soulful “You Can’t Forget Yourself” and the infectious “Summer Romance,” The Redwalls may not be the commercial breakthrough the band may be looking for - it’s not 80s enough - but for discerning rock listeners, this is essential.
--Kevin Mathews
