Lovelock to Winnemucca

Album Review

Center Divide's debut album, Lovelock to Winnemucca, takes us on a journey, both through places and through feelings, with listeners being the better for it. This is very much an album with stories to tell — some humorous, as with the luckless lads who meet the "Landlady From Hell," and some tongue in cheek, like the hapless youth who keeps insisting to his worried momma that "it was no big deal," in the face of earthquake, mudslide, and an angry mob, in "California." But more are lyrical and poignant, as on "Lovelock," which looks back on a lost relationship from the consoling space of a road trip through the desert. There is vibrancy to these songs, and insight. They speak of feelings that many of us have known, of mourning loss, or coping with unexpected troubles, and put that heartfully into words. Then they weave those words into an instrumental mesh of piano, guitars, and percussion, with touches of harmonica, and the results will turn casual listeners into regulars, and have fans coming back to listen again and again. This is a good album for repeat play, whether you're out on your own road trip, or relaxing at home after a long day. For while some of the songs can be wistful, even sad, as on "No U Turn," they still leave you feeling glad you listened. Lovelock to Winnemucca is a welcome introduction to a talented group, and definitely recommended.