Album review: BEAUX GRIS GRIS & THE APOCALYPSE – Hot Nostalgia Radio

April 5th, 2024 by petefeenstra

Grow Vision [Release date 03.05.24]

And suddenly everybody is rediscovering their pop roots.

In many ways Beaux Gris Gris’s ‘Hot Nostalgia Radio’ is the perfect title for an album which celebrates the art of songwriting and is fuelled by the engine room of music virtuosity.

The combination of the two pushes the band further into their extant cross-genre approach, an eclecticism which also takes in swaggering rock and roll with a punk attitude.

What makes this album different is the change of gear on the last five tracks.

They approach moments of soulful introspection as part of a shift into country and Americana roots music. The story telling narratives ultimately lead Greta back to her Louisiana roots.

This is also an album on which the band sees independent music as a badge of honour. There’s a ‘can do’ spirit, as part of an organic approach in which their inherent adventurous spirit leads them to a number of colourful diversions, all from the sepia-into- gothic tinged pen of vocalist Greta Valenti.

Guitarist Robin Davey is provides the perfect foil with sparkling guitar work and an array of interesting tones which always support the song.

Bassist Stephen Mildwater and drummer Tom Rasulo provide the perfect rhythmic foundation, with Chris Cunningham adding bass on ‘Marie’.

Sam Robertson also doubles on various keyboards and accordion to give the band an extra layer of sonic splendour.

I make no apology for reviewing this album in a straight chronological order, as it reflects a subtly evolving work which ebbs and flows as it takes in sundry influences.

Everything has a place, from the opening exclamatory titled ‘Oh Yeah!’ – an impressive slice of autobiographical rock and roll and the title of which recalls the ‘yeah yeah’ 60’s French pop era – to the closing autobiographical ‘Mama Cray’, complete with accordion accompaniment.

They extend the opening bluster on the affirmatory stomp of ‘Wild Wild Woman’ and the heavier riff-driven, gothic tinged lead single ‘Satisfy Your Queen.’

Their keen sense of dynamics leads them into The B52’s style ‘I Told My Baby’.

The song is fattened by Davey’s hypnotic interwoven guitar work and drone sounds, all neatly offset by Robertson’s 60’s Farfisa, as part of an imposing wall of sound, topped by another infectious hook.

The album then veers towards groove laden 60’s pop and soul on the funky ‘Middle Of The Night’ – with nicely contrasts the horns with a stinging guitar tone – and the excellent Smoky Robinson influenced ‘Sad When I’m Dancing’.

The emphasis is wholly on song craft and Greta’s vocals, which are easily the best of her career.

She’s fearless on the soulful ballad ‘All I Could Do Was Cry’. She sings it with such gusto that her emotive and tremulous top line perfectly evokes the song title.

They stay in ballad mode on the outstanding ‘The Runaway’, an uplifting radio friendly song on which the musical accompaniment intuitively supports her aching vocal, into a sweeping hook.

The song has a subtle slow build, with a gently voiced piano, accordion and organ leading to an exhilarating flanger guitar finish.

It’s a high point of an album which changes direction again on a succession of alt.country into Americana material.

The sumptuous groove, percussive snap and emotive vocal of ‘Harder To Breathe’ is a cool example of prosody, on which the vocal and musical accompaniment (including eerie slide) perfectly evoke the song title.

The mid-tempo stomping shuffle of ‘Don’t Let Go’ has an annoyingly familiar melody, perhaps ELO’s ‘Kuiama’, but I’ll probably remember and source it after writing this review!

The shift to Country is more salient on the story telling ‘Penny Paid Rock Star’ and the emotive ‘Marie’ which crosses over from Country to Americana, before the invigorating New Orleans shuffle beat of ‘Let It Ride’, complete with another catchy hook.

They round things off with ‘Mama’s Cray’ a New Orleans style, accordion-driven, autobiographical narrative with a sing-along chorus.

The latter represents a natural geographical and musical book-end to a superbly crafted album with a Well Hung Heart (pun intended). ****

Review by Pete Feenstra

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.

Next session: Sunday 1 December

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David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 3 November 2024.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 29 October 2024.

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Power Plays w/c 11 November 2024

ARCANE MOON Hello Sun (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC XTC (Long Branch Records)
ARCANA KINGS Here We Go (Curtain Call Records)
KLOGR face The Unknown (Zeta Factory)
BEYOND UNBROKEN Dance With The Dead (FiXT)
REVENGIN Decadent Feeling (Wormholedeath)

Featured Albums w/c 11 November 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Singer Songwriter)