Pete Molinari: A Virtual Landscape (Shock)

 |   |  <1 min read

Pete Molinari: It Came Out of the Wilderness
Pete Molinari: A Virtual Landscape (Shock)

English singer-songwriter Molinari's debut Walking off the Map was a beguiling, blatantly Dylanesque affair which found great favour at Elsewhere -- but this time out he's like a pub quiz: which song am I referencing now?
Usually it's Dylan but he lifts shamelessly from Sam Cooke, Hank Williams, the Stones' in 65, young Donovan . . .
And you gotta love a nasal line like this: "they all held me down, said I wouldn't get far, but look what I made out of my head, ma". Dylanologists could probably date that to the month in 64.
Recorded at Toe Rag in London this has a terrific live feel and there is no doubt the man has a great voice (somewhere between young Bob and Lonnie Donegan, at other times sensitive but strong on the ballads).
But the over-riding feeling is of an album that is far too referenced -- lyrically, melodically and stylistically -- in other people's scrapbooks.
So although songs like One Stolen Moment and There She Still Remains are genuine gems they are surrounded by others which make you want to shout, "Yes! I know this one, it's . . ."

Share It

Your Comments

post a comment

More from this section   Music at Elsewhere articles index

Silk Cut: Our Place in the Stars (digital outlets)

Silk Cut: Our Place in the Stars (digital outlets)

  In the jargon of classic British police dramas, Auckland singer/songwriter and guitarist Andrew Thorne of Silk Cut has “considerable prior form”.... > Read more

The Lafayette Afro-Rock Band: Darkest Light, The Best of (Strut)

The Lafayette Afro-Rock Band: Darkest Light, The Best of (Strut)

As I understand it (and I've never heard of these guys before) this band was a loose affiliation of ex-pat US musicians who got together in France in the Seventies and delivered such primo funky... > Read more

Elsewhere at Elsewhere

Aronas: Culture Tunnels (Southbound)

Aronas: Culture Tunnels (Southbound)

This is an interesting one: originally released under the same title but in a different cover two years ago from the band lead by gifted young New Zealand pianist Aron Ottignon, it has now... > Read more

Wailing Urei: Is It Me? (bandcamp)

Wailing Urei: Is It Me? (bandcamp)

As regular readers of Elsewhere know, we find our music where we will – deep trawl, accident, suggestions, record company emails, pals – but obviously not everything takes our... > Read more