The Kamikaze Hearts | Oneida Road

Last winter, jds tipped me off to the dirty folk goodness of The Kamikaze Hearts. We then caught them at Langdon Street in March and had a great time.

They have this warm layered acoustic sound with multi-part harmonies that feels like it was written for urban hipsters while telling tales of northern rural life.

It's like chocolate and peanut butter. City and country...together at last. They call their sound porch rock and I call it dirty folk. Either way, it's not James Taylor and it's not Fugazi. As one friend put it, it's like an uptempo Jose Gonzalez.

The disappointment was that they hadn't captured that same sound on their first album. It sounded thin and distant; lacking that intimacy I had enjoyed. So, for the last few months, I've been listening to the recordings from their radio session at Skidmore College's WSPN which sounded better.

That was until a few weeks ago when I heard their new album, Oneida Road. They friggin' pulled it off. They captured that sound I had fallen in love with during that show. It sounds great just like it did that night last winter. And, as you'd expect, the blog love is starting to pile up.

The opening guitar piece of "No One Called You a Failure" reminds me of Van Morrison's "Wild Night" but as it progresses, it develops a head of speed that gets your head and foot popping around. It has that feeling of being fresh and familiar at the same time.

According to the Collar City Records website, Oneida Road is coming out on Sep 6th and they are heading out on tour shortly thereafter. So, if you want to catch the quintet from Albany, NY, here are the dates:

Thursday, August 31: Cambridge, MA @ Club Passim

Thursday, September 7: Saratoga Springs, NY @ Skidmore College

Friday, September 8: Ithaca, NY @ Castaway's

Thursday, September 21: Buffalo, NY @ Sportsmen's Tavern

Friday, September 22: Chicago, IL @ The Note

Saturday, September 23: St. Louis, MO @ St. Louis University

Sunday, September 24: Indianapolis, IN @ Radio Radio

Friday, September 29: Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse Music Hall
***ONEIDA ROAD CD RELEASE SHOW***

Saturday, September 30: New York, NY @ Mo Pitkins

By the way, this is the second quality release from Collar City Records this year. Brent Gorton's self-titled album this spring continues to grow on me more and more.

The Kamikaze Hearts | No One Called You a Failure | Buy
The Kamikaze Hearts | Ash Wednesday | Buy

From the WSPN Radio Session:
The Kamikaze Hearts | War Horse
The Kamikaze Hearts | Boston Whaler | Note: it's a crime they have recorded "Boston Wailer" on an album yet. Great tune.