CD: Langhorne Slim

Langhorne Slim is the man. A few months ago, I had only a slight familiarity with him, and now he’s one of my favorite new artists. How does this happen? Well, seeing him live just one time is enough to seal the deal – he’s an energetic and captivating performer who uses the classic tricks of the trade (great songs, solid musicians and musicianship, and old school boot-stompin’ passion) to win you over rather than fussy weirdness, pyrotechnics or a carefully crafted aloof persona.

He’s able to generate that rare connection that makes you walk away from a show feeling like you just made a friend — an underdog that you’re ready to ardently root for.

“Underdog “ is quickly becoming inaccurate, as more and more people wake up and recognize Slim’s music, which they’re receiving as a breath of fresh air because his recordings convey the same feeling you get from his live shows. And that, my friends, brings us to his latest self-titled album “Langhorne Slim”, on Kemado Records.

From the opening strains of “Spinning Compass”, you can hear that Slim has kicked it up a notch this time out. There’s a little bit more depth here, certainly owing in part to a few more layers of instrumentation, including rumbling pianos and organs, percussion, trombone and tuba, glockenspiel, and a killer sea shanty accordion.

The first time I listened to the new album I was in the car with my wife, and when the single “Rebel Side of Heaven” came on, she was singing along and bouncing around in the passenger seat. I thought to myself “how many times can she have heard this before? Surely only a handful…” and while that is evidence of the infectiousness of his music, I also can’t help remembering him pulling her up on stage at Johnny Brenda’s in Philly…there may be something going on there…

Moving on. When the Used Wigs team caught up with Slim at that show, I asked him if there were any new themes he was addressing on the upcoming album, and he said “I’m still just singing about love, man.” After a few listens I think that was an exceptionally modest summary. The album is about love in the same way that the movie “Paris Je T’aime” is about love — it may be at the core of every story told within, but there are plenty of nuances and layers surrounding that core and only a very few are of the straightforward “boy loves girl” variety. Still, he’s able to deliver sentiments with hidden complexity in a very disarming and straightforward way (though there are no hidden layers to clear-cut heart stoppers like “Colette,” for example). Great insight is also to be found in world-weary romps like “Hello Sunshine” and “Diamonds and Gold.”

Musically, this collection couldn’t have come out at a better time; it just sounds PERFECT this time of year. It’s a windows-down affair with great hooks, the ambiance of a performance in an old barn somewhere (with plenty of power for amplifiers and a couple of good kegs on tap), and there are few things as satisfying as Slim’s primal screams when he’s about to bring it on home (for evidence, check out the rollicking “She’s Gone”).

Repeat: Langhorne Slim is the man. Give a holler, grab something you can bang on to make some noise, and jump on the bandwagon.

- Russ Starke