Reviews:: United Steel Workers of Montreal Three on the Tree

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The United Steel Workers of Montreal will kick your ass. I’m not really sure what else needs to be said about the urban hillbillies from Montreal, but seriously, one listen to their new record – Three on the Tree – will leave you battered and bruised and emotionally spent.

I could start with the basics; banjo, squeezebox, guitar, and double bass that make you want to stomp a hole in the dance floor or talk about Gern’s gruff, whiskey sloshed vocals. I could even mention the tender ballads the band routinely adds to the mix (the old-time feel of Little Girl is a great example of how they control the tempo of the record) or how perfectly Felicity Hamer drifts into falsetto, but trying to dissect this record takes away from the end result.

I know bluegrass has become increasingly popular over the last few years (thanks in large part to the rise of the Avetts) and naturally that will lead to a ton of bands throwing their hat in the ring, but the USWM are the real deal. Even with multiple song writers with different styles (Shawn Beauchamp, Gern, and Matt Watson), they all manage to pay tribute to the past with classic imagery, sounds and themes - hearing the epic tale of of a man defending the honor of the woman he loves, even if she doesn't love him back on Son, Your Daddy Was Bad or the way they transport the listener to the seedy underbelly of society on Shot Tower will appeal to any longtime fan of the finger picking, as will the familiar sounds of What a Riot - but it's the experimentation they use that will help the Montreal sextet touches a much bigger audience.

Obviously, USWM write songs that take new life once the whiskey and adrenaline start flowing, but they avoid the disconnect that so often plagues energetic bands when they hit the studio. Shot Tower starts as a slow burner, but they change pace midstream and when they break into full gallop (the banjo, mandolin and percussion that clip clops for the last minute surge forward) a charge pulses through your body. Three Hard Knocks sizzles, but they don't rely on frantic finger work to set the tone. The Ballad Of Mary Gallagher could easily find a home on a more radio friendly effort (think Be Good Taynas) and Rise Up sounds like a traditional Irish pub standard. Even as the harmonica and blues guitar rip over the images of heaven and hell on the album closer, Jesus We Sweat, they add Gern’s radio Pasteur pontification to freshen the sound.

But at the end of the day, the thing I like most about the album is how adaptable the band is. You might expect Hamer to focus on the softer touches on the record, leaving the grit and grime for Gern, but the rage she sings with on Glen Jones makes the song. On the flip side, Gern is able to control his gravelly pipes (like the way he shows compassion and control on the lovely duet The Line) and those moments are what transforms the United Steel Workers of Montreal from another fantastic bar band not to miss into a complete band that packs a record full of surprises.



Be sure to check out the USWM when the burn down the Seahorse on Feb. 21st.

Labels: Best-of '09, Canada, Music