Los Colognes – The New World

The Los Colognes trio have an acquired sound that just works, comparable to a whole bunch of warm and fuzzy 70’s musical icons.

Written by: gdmonline

ARTIST: Los Colognes
ALBUM: The New World
LABEL: Down To The Ceiling Music
SERIAL: 0001
YEAR: 2022
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

LINEUP: Jay Rutherford – lead vocals, guitar * Gordon Persha – bass * Aaron ‘Mort’ Mortenson – drums

TRACK LISTING: 01 Ballad Of A Straw Man * 02 Battle Royal * 03 Troll * 04 Run Away * 05 Feedback Loop * 06 The New World * 07 Lonesome Tide * 08 Youtopia * 09 Over And Out

RATING: 95/100

WEBLINKS: Site Link

Background

Los Colognes (pronounced ‘cologne’ as in the perfume) were the Nashville based band that we reviewed back in 2017 courtesy of their super album ‘The Wave’. Their sound is not quite any of the prevailing styles usually featured here at GDM, the trio have an acquired sound that just works, in parts Dire Straits and Pink Floyd along with a whole bunch of warm and fuzzy 70’s musical icons.

LC are an independent band, who by rights really should be on the books of some enterprising record label in Nashville, but that town is fairly parochial when it comes to the music industry – a hard nut to crack by any means should you not look, sound, feel and taste ‘country’. Glad to see Jay, Gordon and Mort deliver a new set, released back in May 2022 called ‘The New World’.

The Songs

Only the nine tracks, but captivating nonetheless. ‘The Ballad Of The Straw Man’ with its laid back rhythm and understated arrangement epitomises the Los Colognes sound. It’s probably why I connect with this band so much. The melodies flow on ‘Battle Royal’, very easy on the ear, including that soaring guitar solo through the middle.

The tempo quickens on ‘Troll’, listening to this shows no trace of that typical Nashville influence. ‘Run Away’ is the slow burner on the album, melodic as heck and could end up being my favourite track so far. There’s a hint of synthwwave on ‘Feedback Loop’, not just in the song title and lyric but aldo the rather lush musical backdrop. A persistent synth motif dominates ‘The New World’, not so dependent on regular drums, an unusual song by their standards.

‘Lonesome Tide’ is a return to the LC template, haunting vocals and subtle guitar lines shine through on this beauty. ‘Youtopia’ is more of breezy happy-go-lucky tune, this is the sort of song I could listen to regularly in our overstressed world. The finale ‘Over And Out’ drifts on a bed of melancholy, the mellow drums and tinkering synth patterns are complimented by Jay Rutherford’s fluid guitar solo. Superb.

In Summary

Los Colognes are a band that this site could readily champion for as long as they are in operation. Their songs are really good and well suited to the GDM readership I would suggest. Stylistically, Los Colognes sit on the outskirts of the melodic rock rim, but when it’s this well done, it makes it difficult to ignore. Recommended.

Los Colognes on Video

Ballad Of A Straw Man