REVIEW - BEANTOWN BOOZEHOUNDS "Pour Another Round" (2009)

Beantown Boozehounds "Pour Another Round" Scally Cap Records SGR-15
Release date: Sept 15, 2009
Running time: 38:4612 tracks


I bought many years ago an album called “Irish Drinking Songs”. It has a sticker on the jewel case that says: “Belly Up & Join the Fun! Great for St. Paddy’s Day or any party!”. Paddy’s Day is arriving and I must say that I won’t play that CD, but another one that could have a similar sticker on it, the Beantown Boozehounds’ debut album “Pour Another Round”.

Beantown Boozehounds is a 4 piece outfit from Boston that has gathered a nice bunch of drinking songs. Eleven self-penned songs and a Wretched Ones cover, "Goin’ Down the Bar". They say that they play drinking class anthems and I have not been able to find a better description: sing-a-long chorus and catchy oi! and street punk songs about drinking. All the members are veterans from the Boston punk scene and they really know how they have to play. Besides, they switch vocal duties and this makes the album more interesting.

From the first track, “On the Road” I was sure that I was going to enjoy the album. A great song that is followed by “Pour Another Round”, a number that starts with a mandolin that rivals with Flatfoot 56.

Apart from those tracks, IMHO the highlights are “D.U.I.”, “Chi-Town Blues” and “Goin’ Down the Bar”. “D.U.I.” is another mandolin driven song in which a couple of members share the vocals. “Chi-Town P.D. Blues” is my fave, I keep on singing “I don’t remember what I did last night, but I woke up black and blue, sitting here in a Chicago jail and I don’t know what to do”. The beginning is a little bit ska-punk, and then the song turns into a superb Clash/Rancid style song. “Goin’ Down the Bar” is also a mighty song that sounds like Angelic Upstarts covering Sham 69.

But the rest of the songs are also worth hearing: “The 19th Hour” (more Clash/Rancid stuff. You think that the song is over and you get a bonus instrumental tune at the end), “Beantown Boozehounds” (this could be a Macc Lads song with aggressive vocals that remind me of Joe Queer singing “I Like Young Girls”), “Old Mr. Boston” ” (a slow paced mandolin driven song that could be a traditional Irish song) “Tonight” ( a classic oi! song) and “We’lll be drinking” (a guest plays sax on this Peter and the Test Tube Babies style song). Even the last track, a folkie number in which the sax player plays flute, seems to be at the right place after all the energy spent on the previous tracks.

I hope that Beantown Boozehounds will be releasing their second album soon. In fact I need it, I’m addicted to their drinking anthems. And if they cover The Queers, I will be happier: “Hey you motherfucker I only drink STOUT”


Tracklist:

01 - On the Road
02 - Pour Another Round
03 - Break of Dawn
04 - D.U.I.
05 - Chi-Town P.D. Blues
06 - The 19th Hour
07 - Beantown Boozehounds
08 - Old Mr. Boston
09 - Tonight
10 - We'll Be Drinking
11 - Goin' Down the Bar
12 - Where the Rats Roam

http://www.beantownbooking.com/
http://www.reverbnation.com/beantownboozehounds
http://www.myspace.com/beantownboozehounds
http://www.facebook.com/beantown.boozehounds
http://twitter.com/617Boozehounds
http://www.myspace.com/beantownbooking


http://www.beantownbooking.com/beantownboozehoundsstore.html (Click to buy the album)
http://www.sailorsgraverecords.com/artist.php?id=beantownboozehounds (Click to buy the album)

Review by Kinksmarkham

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