Tom Hambridge,
Balderdash
(Artemis, 2000)


Buffalo, N.Y., native Tom Hambridge's solo debut is a rockin' good time, with no illusions about its nature: folk and country influences aside, it is a rock record through and through. Hambridge has a gravelly, strident voice and pours it fully into every track, from the tortured "Strong Enough" to the country-inspired "Opposites Attract," a duet with Grammy nominee Susan Tedeschi, to the stripped-down straightforwardness of "Fever."

Hambridge began his musical career as a drummer and plays all the drums on Balderdash. Playing drums rather than guitar lends him a different perspective on music and makes the 12 tracks he's written on this record original. They have a rhythm to them that is centered around the heartbeat of his drums.

He teams with Tedeschi a second time for a power ballad called "Long Way Home." Their voices are perfectly suited for this kind of tortured love song, which still has an upbeat drum track and screaming guitars. "Big & Empty" sees Hambridge on drums and tambourine, with a bit more sadness in his voice. He softens his tone to showing his range as a vocalist as he sings about a relationship breaking up.

Hambridge adapts a lullaby he sang to his oldest daughter in "Rachel Fay" -- as unlikely as it sounds, he's turned it into a kickin' ode to "my little redhead girl." He searches for a place and a woman to call home in "Highway," featuring Tedeschi again on background vocals.

The flow of the record falters a bit towards the end, with "Rock Me Right" and "12 Inches"; he sacrifices originality for rock 'n' roll heroics.

On the whole, this is a strong record -- the songwriting is good and the music is part good old rock 'n' roll and part modern pop/rock. His music harkens back to an earlier era of pure rock, while the majority of his lyrics fit with the more complex themes of modern popular music.




Rambles.NET
music review by
Rachel Jagt


8 July 2001


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