Scud Mountain Boys

Dance The Night Away (Chunk)
by Joshua Brown

The Scud Mountain Boys are perfect for those who want to find some balance in their CD collection. Something mellow that will serve as an antidote once in a while to the “louder, faster, more distortion” mentality. Straight ahead rock won’t cut it, and neither will Juliana Hatfield. The dilemma is, how do you find something soft and soothing that’s actually cool and doesn’t make you feel like you’re shopping in Woolworth’s or going through your mom’s record collection? For me, the Scud Mountain Boys are the solution to this quandary, since they’re mellower than Sade yet remain 100% rock ‘n’ roll. The fact that they’ve been touring with the noise rock band, the Silver Jews, should help back up this statement.

The repertoire ranges from folky, acoustic stuff that makes interesting use of the mandolin, to full-on country music replete with lap-played steel slide guitar. The lead and backing vocals are gorgeous, reminiscent of Lou Reed and John Cale on the Velvet Underground’s third album. In a nutshell, Dance the Night Away is the sound of one long, surrendering, cathartic sigh.