Otis Taylor's Contraband

Otis Mark Taylor was born in Chicago, and after his uncle was shot to death the family moved to Denver. Denver wins that one, hands down. I do not know if Mr. Taylor's' sensitivities would have been where they ended up if he were in the urban village that Chicago is, but that is not the point of this review, it is just my thought on a fact.

Contraband, takes it's name from an article that appeared in the May/June 2011 issue of Preservation Magazine about runaway slaves who escaped to the Union lines at a fort in Virginia. They were known as "contraband" and lived in camps where the conditions were at times, worse than those of the plantations they had escaped.

The Devil's Gonna Lie starts us out with the iconic howls and slightly demonic laugh of Mr. Taylor and screeching sounds from Ron Miles cornet that transforms into a wonderful groove where the entire band allows us to hear what they are capable of. With Chuck Campbell on sacred steel and the Cheryl Renee Choir it builds to a crescendo that lifts us all with the knowledge that, as Mr, Taylor states, "when there is peace the devil wants war. When there is love the devil wants hate".

What I found very nice, was the inclusion of seven acoustic original tunes with the first being 'Yell Your Name'. With Mr. Miles once again working his cornet in contra-syncopation, and Mr. Larry Thompson on the drums this track has a fugue feel that could have been written in the 17th century, the late 60's, or today - a testament to it's timeless nature and capturing of the spirit of human emotions. Later we are treated to 'Open These Bars' with it's echo-drenched lead guitar work over Mr, Taylor's' acoustic work and, his daughter, Cassie's bass rounding out the sound.

As for other 'timeless' songs Mr. Taylor has included (fortunately for us) 'The Romans Had Their Way' a song that he wrote back in the sixties while listening to groups such as the Kinks. On this cut there is a sold beat with Fara Tolno on the Djembe and John Paul Johnson putting down some well placed riffs accompanied by the organ work of Mr. Brian Juan. All this as we contemplate whether or not we would still be here today if the Romans had their way in war - THINK.

In a tune that reminds me of the early Mark-Almond band's eponymous release, a deep yet simple statement of an relationship. With a wonderful layer of artistically created sound from Ms. Anne Harris on fiddle we get a masterful painting that would stand up in any gallery if sounds could be put on canvas as a painting.

Trying not to go though each track (though I am want to) I will move to the title track 'Contraband'. A swirling sound scape that one might feel has a touch of Pink Floyd psychedelia but that would be too simple to say and not totally true. It is a wonderful example of what has become known as 'Trance Blues'. A driving beat with flights of fiddle, edgy electric guitars that all come together with Mr. Taylor's haunting vocals providing minimal but forceful insistence and then they die away much like the last rays of a vanquished civilization that slavery's way of life turned out to be. It is interesting historically how the Union forces viewed slaves as captured property or contraband, isn't it.

We wrap it all up with one of Mr. Taylor's dark and twisted love songs "I Can See You're Lying'. This is a straight ahead rock-blues groove again featuring Mr. John Paul Johnson on scorching well placed lead work, while the band pumps out driving rhythms. The song perfectly captures the sensibilities of how the brides former lover knows the real deal and confronts her with the fact that she still loves him.

This release is a very nice mixture of different styles and approaches to his written words. It is nice to hear the acoustic selections included with the heavier numbers, yet they are not diminished by the presence of the later only made stronger as we see them hold up their end of the bargain. Mr. Taylor's band is a perfect assembly of unique musicians who work together for the common good and their achievement is stunning once again. One note I should mention is that Todd Edmunds also plays bass on this release along with Cassie Taylor each providing the pivot that the wheels of Mr. Taylor musical machine churn around.

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When Otis Taylor puts out a new album, you know that you are going to get a few basics-- songs about historical injustices, dark religious themes, unusual instrumentation, and the dark groove of what he calls, "trance blues." That's all here. Taylor's sound keeps evolving in small steps, though, and this album fits very neatly next to Clovis People, by virtue of the prominent roles played alternately by Chuck Campbell's pedal steel (which first appeared with Taylor on Clovis People) and frequent collaborator Ron Miles' cornet or trumpet. Most of the songs feature either Campbell or Miles, with the Campbell tracks leaning closer to rock-influenced gospel-blues, and the Miles tracks being jazzier, as one would expect. If you were hoping to hear Campbell and Miles meet in the middle and jam together around one of Taylor's compositions, you are not going to get much of that. In fact, both Campbell and Miles play in a much more subdued manner than one might expect. After all, while Taylor is a storyteller when it comes to lyrics, he is essentially a sonic painter. Each song, or perhaps "trance," is built around a simple structure in order to create a groove. That approach doesn't lend itself to extended solos that go off into the stratosphere, as either Campbell or Miles would be likely to do on their own. This might seem like a waste of their talents, but when the music really calls for it, Taylor showcases the virtuosity of his side-men.

It should also be noted that while Taylor's sound has evolved since his first few albums (obviously, an album featuring Eddie Turner is going to sound very different from an album featuring Chuck Campbell), Taylor continues to return to the same basic melodic and rhythmic structures that he always uses. As forward-thinking as he is, he follows the old blues tradition of reusing musical ideas. They are always somewhat modified, as though he is tinkering with his creations, but when it gets right down to it, these structures are the basis for the Otis Taylor sound. He has created his own subgenre of blues. He gets to make the rules. Let him put you in a "trance," and you won't be disappointed.

One other thing that must be said-- there isn't enough of Otis' daughter Cassie on this album. Cassie handles most of the bass duties, but why let her voice go to waste? I love the way her spooky, soulful voice has worked with her father's compositions in the past. Of course, if you just want to hear Cassie's voice, you now have some other options.

Being familiar with Otis Taylor and enjoying all his previous albums, I have found this to be his best work to date.
As an avid listener to this genre of music, Otis really brings it in.
A nice variety of sound is presented here, from an accompaniment of horns, to Anne Harris on violin, helping one to conjure visuals of life through his music.
I can't stop listening, each time hearing something new in the musical layers he has created.