Search - Darren Smith :: Last Drive

What?s the trick to mixing the old with the new? Not an easy question, for sure. But the artist who pulls it off, who can conjure that mystical combination of tone and style from the greats ? the simple, straight rebellion of Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, the twist of phrase of Dylan and Prine ? with the biggest, freshest melodic sounds of today ? think Gillian Welch or Josh Ritter backed by My Morning Jacket or Wilco. Well, that?s just good stuff. Darren Smith has found the hard-to-find, the sweet mix of the timeless and the latest, on his new solo record, Last Drive (Crafty Records). A longtime member of the Seattle band Straw Dogs, Smith has put together a collection of 11 amazing story songs of his own. The album?s title track is well chosen, building as it does from a road-weary plea to a kicking rumble that begs for one more turn at the wheel. And the CD?s lead track, ?Dogtown Mines,? starts loud and lean in its look back at one man?s fruitless search for! love and riches: ?I left on a line with the hope I?d find / My riches in the hills of the Dogtown Mines.? By the time the song?s chorus hits, you can see and feel the ?heartache and lost souls? that pushed the writer to the edge ? yet somehow, with the infectious chorus melody and the whole band up and running, it all feels good. On each track, Smith?s voice and guitar work are up front where they should be, plaintive and yearning, determined to be heard ? no, listened to ? as he recounts lost adventures, fearful returns, and the relentless pursuit of the truth in love. Backed by a solid band (Casey Miller on drums and Eric Bryson on bass), Smith has also brought in guest musicians to fill out the songs with pedal steel (Dan Tyack), mandolin (Zak Borden), and even accordion (Nova Devonie) to add a perfect old timey flavor in all the right places. And for three of the songs, including the countrified pop gem ?Someday,? Smith enlisted fellow Straw Dog Dave von Beck to lend a hand with the songwriting. Last Drive ends with the Elliot Smith-flavored ?Surrounded,? a sweeping acoustic waltz that talks of lifelong love, leaving us hopeful that Darren Smith?s lifelong love of songcraft means this is nothing close to the last drive, but rather the first of many. Discography: Last Drive (2006) Tell the Rising Sun (Straw Dogs, 2005) Hum of the Motor (Straw Dogs, 2003) Any Place at All (Straw Dogs, 2001) Shows/Press: www.darren-smith.com www.craftyrecords.com