Coming to this release with a deep love of the Blues, duo Rabbit Foot recently released their debut LP to some quite high praise. Taking the form of a 7 track tribute to their favourite genre, it’s not difficult to see why – ‘Swamp Boogie’ is an intriguing listen.
This is music you would be pleased to listen to over a whisky in a dark, dingy Americana bar. By stripping the Blues back to basic – back to its roots you might say – Rabbit Foot have hit upon a signature sound that is sparse but effective. Only the fundamentals remain – blues chords, clean electric guitar, gruff vocals – and though some more variation in instrumentation might be needed going forward, for the duration of this record it retains its charm.
Proceedings are opened with ‘Wang Dang Doodle’, which introduces us to the guitar and vocal combination that holds most of the album together. With the fuzzy production giving it a raw, dirty edge, the female vocal of Carly Veigas (British Blues Award nominee) stands out ably. From there, a male vocal switches things up for ‘Burn Burn’, built around a languid shuffle rhythm, before ‘Howlin’ For My Darlin” switches rhythm again to a more rolling, momentum based beat.
Next, a rock guitar opening sets ‘Fantasy Blues’ apart, setting the scene for one of the fuller sounding tracks replete with layered vocals. The traditional story telling background of the blues is serviced in ‘Leave My Man Alone’ (a fairly self-explanatory title), which serves as a warning for the female protagonist’s love rival, before ‘Smokestack Lightnin” brings in a walking bass line, growled female vocals and shuffled percussion.
Album highlight though, thanks to excellent guitar work, is closer ‘Down The Road’ – a fitting return to fuxx blues form, and a male vocal that bids farewell as ‘back down the road I go’.
