One of the problems of the Americana scene is that, and here-in lies the issue, in bringing lost sounds of folk tradition back to life, artists can sometimes be left floundering for originality. It's no stain on the music which can be sublime sometimes but there is a trap that so many fall into where they degenerate into a derivative outfit who offer nothing new to the genre.
Not so with Hurray For The Riff Raff, who, despite their name sounding like a rabble of barnstormers, is the main focus of Puerto Rican Alynda Lee Segarra. In recreating the sounds of old she has stumbled on a magic formula that lifts her way above her peers. Akin to how Sharon Jones takes soul and brings it kicking into a new century with all the retro feel still intact, Alynda effortlessly sounds both new and old and like a sharp breath of fresh air.
Superlatives may not be enough for the talent at work here and Small Town Heroes is the sort of album that you end up living with for a long time. Alynda's warm and feisty voice swoops over the sublime music and creates a strange parallel universe to the olde time ragamuffins who used to play down at the hill-billy hop.
The joyful 'Blue Ridge Mountain' channels the wonderful days of The Carter Family replete with all the banjos and shuffling bass and the album continues along in the same vein without losing a single beat or dropping off once.
One of the highlights is the glorious murder ballad 'Good Time Blues (An Outlaw's Lament)' which takes the pace right down to a crawl and focuses and the stunning vocals of Ms Segarra, another is the bluesy feel of 'St. Rochs Blues' which sounds like the ghost of Etta James at her finest. It's sublime and totally encapsulating.
Although the songs on this album are so ingrained in an old school mentality, none of it sounds out of place in a contemporary climate and does the magic trick of crossing boundaries whilst also feeling effortless. The production is immaculate and allows room for the instruments to breathe and for the feel to come through rather than an anodyne replica. It's quite simply marvellous and you will have a cold heart not to warm to the wondrous songs on here. This is one of the finest albums of this ilk for a long time and has the makings of a future classic.
