Chad Price’s resume is quite colorful and exceptional. He was recruited as the third lead singer for the punk legends All in 1993, and by the late ’90s he was finding interest in alt-country ideas and formed Drag The River with Jon Snodgrass. More recently, he’s been fronting A Vulture Wake, and he’s got a couple solo albums mixed in there as well.
Here, Price entertains his interest in prog-influenced songwriting, where a new band who he met while singing for an All cover band help him find new avenues to explore.
The pretty and dreamy “Fawn” begins the listen with dreamy guitar and Price’s gritty but tuneful pipes alongside Cory West’s elegant drumming in a crunchy Americana setting. “Rose” follows with a bit more muscle that touches on Price’s punk past with roots flavor, while the intimate and poetic “Rainbow” is all heart and soul.
The middle tracks bring us the shifting tones of the rock opera “Sunflower,” plus the alt-country spirit of the cautious “Tongue,” where Anthony Medici’s bass helps the tune build into a powerful album highlight.
The back half of the record leads with the bare, folk song craft of the emotive “Tell Me,” thought it isn’t long until “A.M.” finds itself in fuller territory, where vocal harmonies and swirling guitars fuel the more rugged areas of rock.
“Wake Me” and “Alchemists” close out the record. The former is strong on storytelling and pairs calm, mysterious moments with dense and soaring guitar solos, and the latter is just Price’s sincere voice and cozy guitar in a raw recording.
An artist who was a skate punk hero to many decades ago, Price is still making important music that’s thoughtful, relatable and eclectic.
