http://miccontrolblog.com/2009/04/28/album-review-not-as-far-by-three-legged-fox/
Album Review: ‘Not As Far’ by Three Legged Fox
MicControl
4-28-09
Let me start by saying that this is what a roots-rock band should be. Now, Three Legged Fox’s new album Not As Far does not reinvent the wheel, but thats not a bad thing. In fact, this album seems to shine much more than I would typically give credit to a root-rock band due to the high-quality song writing, vocals and professionalism showcased throughout. I was amazed how fresh the album feels, song after song, even though I think that the roots-rock genre has been pretty played out. Thats not to say that I don’t enjoy the genre, because I think there are a lot of talented bands that play strictly roots-rock, but it just seems like introducing new music that involved up-stroke guitar, and Bob Marley-style bass lines has been done, so why do it again? But I never seemed to get that feeling from Three Legged Fox. By adding in the dimension of blues and gospel, their sound resonates as much more fresh and original than it would have otherwise.
The song writing is fantastic; the song form of each song flows effortlessly from one section to the next, with outstanding melodies and harmonies that create very effective and catchy hooks during the choruses. The vocalist has a very wonderfully deep and powerful voice, whose presence allows the songs to achieve much greater high points than what would have been achieved if these songs were coupled with a weak singer.
There is also the idea of professionalism and musicianship. Although I wouldn’t call any of these musicians ‘masters’ of their instruments, I would say that they have worked together to create an extremely tight sound that works to achieve the exact sound they were looking for. There is no room for sloppy playing, and the songs on this album benefit greatly from this fact. The production values are top notch, with an excellent mixing job allowing the listener the ability to distinguish all of the musical arrangements including guitar, bass, drums, vocals (including high and low harmonies), horn arrangements and percussion.
Three Legged Fox could be compared to early OAR and Slightly Stoopid (OG from Slightly Stoopid appears on this album to play percussion), but I found the vocals to be more comparable to Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes, with a smooth and deep blues vocal styling. The highlights on the album include Soul Thief, Back Again, Help (my personal favorite on the album- the female chorus is a beautiful touch!) and Easier Way (I love the bluesy sound of slide guitar). But there really is not a track on this album that can be passed up. The high caliber song writing on this album made it a very enjoyable experience; I will most definitely be adding this album to my collection of music to listen to this summer.
http://miccontrolblog.com