[.ca] Stuck on Love

From Amazon.co.uk:
Stuck on Love, the debut album from London's The Arlenes, belies their reputation as an underground country outfit. From the opening title track, singer Big Steve (also the songwriter) sounds more like a late-50s pop star--simple, innocent and heartsick--than some drink-ravaged Johnny Cash wannabe. Indeed, by the second track ("Into Every Life Falls A Little Rain"), you begin to believe The Arlenes are the silver-tongued children of the slightly countrified, pop-idolising likes of Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds. "Lonely Won't Leave Me Alone", sung by Steve's wife Stephanie Arlene, is a backwoods blues teetering on the edge of darkness, a tale of bitter lessons learned that lends the album a promising depth and variety. Unfortunately, Stuck on Love's middle sags--it's uninspired country pop--until spirits are raised by the mean(ish) rockabilly of "Man Of Meagre Ambition", which leads into a redeeming grand finale. The sweet, subdued "So Sad to See You Gone" recalls The Eagles: the bluesy "I Just Smoulder" conjures the spirit of Gram Parsons: while the closing "Everybody's Mind Gets Broke Sometimes" is rootsy and atmospheric, sure to appeal to the many fans of the O Brother Where Art Thou? soundtrack. All in all, it's a well-crafted work, consistently life-affirming and, occasionally, genuinely moving. --Dominic Wills

Don't miss this one!:
At the music store recently I saw this CD and, having vaguely remembered hearing positive things about them somewhere, purchased it. Easily the best decision I made that day. Don't let the alt.country label affixed to this band turn you off. While the "twang quotient" is high, these are basically pop songs played with care and with a nod to late 60s/early 70s AM country radio. It all sounds effortless and should appeal to fans of rock, pop, C & W, and maybe even Britpop. You could describe this as honky tonk meets Brit Pop, as the home base for The Arlenes is London. The first 5 tracks are just gorgeous, especially the shoulda-been-a-hit 'Springboard', which sounds amazingly like Glen Campbell, right from "Big Steve" Arlene's boyish tenor to the acoustic guitars. 'Tell Someone That You Love Them' is another gem that casts a lovely country rock spell before trasforming into a chiming guitar, pedal steel hoe-down. 'Lonesome Won't Leave Me Alone' is a haunting lament of depression with Stephanie Arlene unleashing her powerful voice. Songs 6 thru 8 aren't bad, but don't really stand up to the magic that comes before. However, things pick up nicely with 'I Just Smoulder' which, as you might expect, does just that. "Everybody's Mind Gets Broke Sometimes' closes things out nicely. Each song has jangly, chiming guitars interwoven with steel guitar. Stephanie Arlene harmonizes on just about each track. Their voices wrap around each other comfortably. This was on the top of my Best of 2002 list. It's that good.