'Railroad Cadences & Melancholic Anthems' By José Medeles
Drummer José Medeles has built a rather impressive and eclectic resume having worked with the likes of The Breeders, Ben Harper, Joey Ramone, She & Him and Modest Mouse just to name a few. One of his main focuses aside from running his own vintage drum shop in Portland, Oregon, is the genre-bending 1939 Ensemble, whose music can be best described as jazz-meets-post-rock.
For Jealous Butcher Records, Medeles ventures away from ensemble settings and his usual obligations on his fourth solo album, Railroad Cadences & Melancholic Anthems, an improvisational affair of John Fahey-inspired Americana and blues. With the help of musicians M. Ward, Marisa Anderson, and Chris Funk (Decemberists) in duo settings with acoustic and electric guitars, percussionist Medeles and company craft a beautiful and thoughtful journey through American music.
The rolling guitar lines on the opener “Please Send to J.F.” carries hints of bluegrass while “The Paper Snake” is filled with blues cliches. As if the nod to American music was not apparent, the closing track features a voicemail message from someone talking about the delta blues great Robert Johnson and his impact.
Oftentimes it can be challenging for percussionists who are creatively in charge to be the main focus in their compositions when naturally, more melodic and harmonic instruments tend to stick out to the ear more. But Medeles’ percussive touch, although subtle, is extremely dynamic and intentional. Throughout the album, Medeles uses deep sounding bass drums and liquidy cymbals that splash over everything, as well as auxiliary percussion that sometimes sounds like someone shuffling through a box of jewelry.
The guitarists get experimental as well, employing a wide variety of effects from delay pedals to extended techniques, such as bending, sliding, and fingerstyle playing. On “Golden,” the guitarist sounds like they are going to break a string when they aggressively snap the low strings.
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For an instrumental album, Railroad Cadences & Melancholic Anthems has a clear vision, never really feeling unsure of where the music will go. It feels rehearsed and sometimes arranged, yet still possesses the surprises that improvisation brings, which helps when you have such a decorated leader as Medeles, who possesses a clear direction. As if Medeles wasn’t impressive enough, he is also the author of three drum-related books.
