With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

Curtis Eller is new to these pages, but Dan Lucas a.k.a. Boss Caine is a huge fan, so I had to give Mister Eller a listen. Once again Dan Lucas proves he knows good music. The new album from Curtis Eller’s American Circus, ‘Another Nice Mess’ is rather special indeed. The album opens with a swampy deep south-sounding workout called “True Love In The Exclusion Zone”. This song would be a perfect fit to soundtrack a dark, gothic horror film. “Goddam Loser” has elements of Dr. John, but with banjo and not keys. It also has a twang of Elton and Bernie’s attempts to do country music. The light country jazz feel on “Conscientious Objector” showcases Eller’s smoky voice perfectly. If Roger Waters went down Eller’s musical road rather than the pomp and prog of Pink Floyd he might sound like Eller on “We Know This By Heart” which is an utterly gorgeous song in a collection of utterly gorgeous songs. It also picks on the type of subject matter Waters has tackled before, this time the sad resignation to and familiarity of school shootings. Curtis Eller knows how to tell a great story in songs and “Carry The Faces (for Martha Wills)” invites you into his world and weaves a remarkable raconteur’s tale. The brass arrangements suggest the dark side of New Orleans. The title track, “Another Nice Mess” reminds me of early Dr.Hook when they still had the Medicine Show suffix and Ray Sawyer sang on “Sylvia’s Mother”. It carries such beauty in its simplicity and is an homage to the great friendship between Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.

“Sonny Liston Told Us” has a dark funereal mood. Is it a narrative about the mysteries and darkness in Liston’s life, I don’t know, but it is a damned good tune. The sparse arrangements of banjo, bass, and Eller’s voice on “An Only Child” set the hairs on the back of my neck to rise, particularly when Eller sings of being afraid to die. His voice oozes deep emotion here. A dark blues style erupts on “Standard White Jesus” and it seeps into the auditory cortex of your brain and takes up residence. The dreamy late-night female vocal takes “Time Moves Slow (For Lilian Leitzel)” in a wonderful new direction which takes in the feel of someone plucking a banjo on the back porch while listening to a gospel choir. Eller’s voice is at its most soulful too. I believe that the titular Lilian Leitzel was a circus performer in the early 20th century. This is probably the finest track on the album. Album closer “I Saw Fay Wray” is a bluegrass-style almost lament about Eller’s experience of seeing Fay Wray in New York and mentions the high point of her career, ‘King Kong’ from 1933. This quirky, emotive, and vibrant album might well be one of the albums of the year for me! How about you?

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