This is a post about AA Bondy. But it is also a post about music blogs, Verbena, and how music blogs love AA Bondy but don't seem to care about Verbena. Blogs are great for finding out about new music, but this narrowness of scope, often confined to what's hot on Pitchfork, is one of the reasons I started Thin Mercury Sound. Verbena has been one of my favorite bands for a while now, so I was thrilled when I found out in 2007 that AA Bondy, of Verbena "fame," was releasing a solo record, American Hearts. This album is a superb piece of somewhat Dylanesque, acoustic guitar, harmonica-driven Americana folk music and Bondy received some well-deserved praise. His new release, When the Devil's Loose, manages to add a full band while also slowing the music down to a sleepy, beautiful pace. It took me a little while to get into this one, but some of the songs are nearly perfect and I've grown to love it.
However, whenever I would read the mostly favorable reviews of Bondy's solo career, his tremendous back catalogue in Verbena is either ignored, commented on in passing, or dismissed as 1990's alternative rock. Heaven forbid these writers pick up La Musica Negra for a penny in the used bin, or download the torrent for free, to gain additional avenues of enjoyment for an artist they supposedly love. Judge for yourself below, but Verbena was one of the most intelligent, consistent-yet-versatile, blues-rock bands of all time. Enjoy a pair of songs from both of AA Bondy's solo albums and each of Verbena's full-length albums.
AA Bondy - Mightiest of Guns
AA Bondy - I Can See the Pines Are Dancing
from When the Devil's Loose
buy
AA Bondy - American Hearts
AA Bondy - Sweet Rapture (Sweet Rapture)
from American Hearts
buy
Verbena - So WhatVerbena - Postcard Blues
from Souls For Sale
buy
Verbena - Baby Got Shot
Verbena - Big Skies, Black Rainbows
from Into the Pink
find this used somewhere...
Verbena - I, Pistol
Verbena - Me and Your Sister
from La Musica Negra
find this used somewhere...
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