COTTON JONES, THE PARSON RED HEADS, SILVER THREAD TRIO
PLUSH
Saturday, June 6
Caroline Isaacs, Laura Kepner-Adney and Gabrielle Pietrangelo of
local act Silver Thread Trio have voices that give their words wings.
While they’ve composed a few songs from scratch, they specialize in
breathing new life into century-old folk/Americana songs by writing
meticulous arrangements that capture the best of what each of these
women has to offer.
They added more instruments to provide texture in this performance,
but harmonizing was their pillar, as evidenced by the silence of
awestruck onlookers. The ubiquitous Sean Rogers contributed rhythms on
his upright bass; a washboard with brushes and a glockenspiel added
soft touches that complemented the Silver Thread Trio’s seamless
harmonies. They occupy a precious place in Tucson’s music scene, where
delicate, seasoned voices and an attention to detail triumph over
blaring guitars and accompanying feedback.
Los Angeles’ Parson Red Heads consist of four (and sometimes five)
shaggy guitarists, along with a drummer. Each member wore white, and
their breezy, mellow musical style felt a great deal like floating away
on the nearest cloud. The well-played pedal steel added a layer that
made me think of a Southern jam band on morphine.
Harmonizing beautifully in three, four and even five parts, they
hearken back to the days of Crosby, Stills and Nash, albeit with less
political bite. Case in point was the catchy sing-along tune “Got It
All,” off of their 2008 EP Owl and Timber. The Parson Red Heads
provided the sonic backdrop for a lovely evening out on the town, even
if you caught yourself chatting up friends instead of focusing on the
stage. They could’ve used more time to showcase individual talents, but
the final jam at the tail end of their set was priceless.
Headliners Cotton Jones added another layer of vintage-sounding,
chilled-out rock ‘n’ roll with guitars, drums and an organ. Whitney
McGraw and songwriter Michael Nau rounded out a terrific night of
harmonizing with their contrasting sweet and gritty voices. “Blood Red
Sentimental Blues,” from their newest release, Paranoid Cocoon,
is a song that they claimed once started a brawl at another venue. It
showed off their dreamy, poignant sound and led me to the following
conclusion: Cotton Jones should be required listening for those about
to fall in love.
This article appears in Jun 11-17, 2009.
