4 / 5 stars in MOJO December 2021
4 STAR MINESWEEPING REVIEW FROM THE DAILY MIRROR
MINESWEEPING REVIEW FROM THE INDEPENDENT
Album Reviews By Andy Gill
3 ***
Download: Like a Wave Breaks on a Rock; Call A Cab Cinderella;It Was the Sweetest Thing, Hangover Me
On Minesweeping, Alabama 3’s Larry Love and Brendan O’Connell pursue the roots Anglo-American path explored on 2006’s Ghost Flight.
It’s an album of farewells, fallen angels and fond billets doux. Over circular guitar arpeggios and accordion, death-row inmates are counselled in Like a Wave Breaks on a Rock while an addict is offered encouragement in Come on Boy.
Sweeter trysts are considered in duets with Buffy Sainte-Marie, on Shake Off Your Shoes, and Rumer, joining Love in search of “bad company” in Hangover Me.
Echoes of I Shall Be Released haunt another liaison in the country-soul ballad It Was the Sweetest Thing, one of the most effective vehicles for Love’s Lanegan-like wounded baritone.
3 ***
Download: Like a Wave Breaks on a Rock; Call A Cab Cinderella;It Was the Sweetest Thing, Hangover Me
On Minesweeping, Alabama 3’s Larry Love and Brendan O’Connell pursue the roots Anglo-American path explored on 2006’s Ghost Flight.
It’s an album of farewells, fallen angels and fond billets doux. Over circular guitar arpeggios and accordion, death-row inmates are counselled in Like a Wave Breaks on a Rock while an addict is offered encouragement in Come on Boy.
Sweeter trysts are considered in duets with Buffy Sainte-Marie, on Shake Off Your Shoes, and Rumer, joining Love in search of “bad company” in Hangover Me.
Echoes of I Shall Be Released haunt another liaison in the country-soul ballad It Was the Sweetest Thing, one of the most effective vehicles for Love’s Lanegan-like wounded baritone.
MINESWEEPING REVIEW FROM THE SCOTSMAN
MINESWEEPING REVIEW FROM THE IRISH NEWS
Larry Love of Alabama 3 and Brendan O’Connell have been making music for years, and Minesweeping is evidence that the collaboration works.
With a little help from guest vocalists, the album features many tracks that are instantly likable.
Like A Wave Breaks On A Rock has the markings of a classic with an hypnotic riff, while Hangover Me featuring Rumer is the kind of song you wouldn’t mind playing on repeat, and its contrasting voices are a treat.
For a dreamy nostalgic song look no further than It Was The Sweetest Thing, while there’s an old school rock and roll feel to If It’s Not Broken.
After one listen to the chorus, it’s difficult not to join in next time round on the catchy Love Is Like A Rolling Stone featuring Tenor Fly, while Pete Doherty features on the atmospheric title track.
This is a strong album that would boost anyone’s music collection.
With a little help from guest vocalists, the album features many tracks that are instantly likable.
Like A Wave Breaks On A Rock has the markings of a classic with an hypnotic riff, while Hangover Me featuring Rumer is the kind of song you wouldn’t mind playing on repeat, and its contrasting voices are a treat.
For a dreamy nostalgic song look no further than It Was The Sweetest Thing, while there’s an old school rock and roll feel to If It’s Not Broken.
After one listen to the chorus, it’s difficult not to join in next time round on the catchy Love Is Like A Rolling Stone featuring Tenor Fly, while Pete Doherty features on the atmospheric title track.
This is a strong album that would boost anyone’s music collection.
LIVE REVIEW: O'CONNELL & LOVE AT THE 100 CLUB, ALBUM LAUNCH
Minesweeping is Larry Love’s new album, co-written with Brendan O’Connell...
This album by O’Connell and Love is a second-time round departure for Larry, who is more familiar with his down-and-dirty acid house country folk Alabama 3 persona. His first solo album was Ghost Flight in 2006. Minesweeping is a collection of gentle-sounding country /Americana numbers, comprising some lush ballads to sing along to, but lyrically, there’s a sting in their tail.
Love, O’Connell and band held their launch party at the 100 Club last week, after the album’s release 0n 6th July 2015, and true to Alabama 3 form, it had the feel of a big celebratory party.
READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE: gourmetgigs.com
This album by O’Connell and Love is a second-time round departure for Larry, who is more familiar with his down-and-dirty acid house country folk Alabama 3 persona. His first solo album was Ghost Flight in 2006. Minesweeping is a collection of gentle-sounding country /Americana numbers, comprising some lush ballads to sing along to, but lyrically, there’s a sting in their tail.
Love, O’Connell and band held their launch party at the 100 Club last week, after the album’s release 0n 6th July 2015, and true to Alabama 3 form, it had the feel of a big celebratory party.
READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE: gourmetgigs.com
LONESOME HIGHWAY REVIEW OF MINESWEEPING
Minesweeping could not possibly be any further from the acid house country material normally associated with Alabama 3 lead vocalist and songwriter Larry Love. The album is a collaboration between Love and Brendan O’Connell, who co-wrote Love’s solo album Ghost Flight, recorded in 2006.
It is produced by Love and O’Connell under the watchful eye of Greg Fleming, better known as Wizard, whose previous work includes The Chemical Brothers, X Press 2 and DJ Fresh. It boasts a most impressive list of guest vocalists including Rumor, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Aurora Dawn and June Miles-Kingston. The closing title track also includes a spoken rendition by Pete Doherty of the Wilfred Owen’s poem "Dulce et decorum est ." No less impressive is the quality and diversity of the musicians involved in the recording, including Segs Jennings (The Ruts), Seamus Beaghen (Madness) and Jay Darlington (Madness).
Given the ingredients it’s surprising that the album is actually much closer to late night bedsit listening than the dancefloor, and saddens, stimulates and soothes in equal measures. A reference point would be the Mark Lanegan and Isobel Campbell trilogy of albums Sunday at Devil Dirt, Ballad of The Broken Seas and Hawk. Love and Lanegan could have been separated at birth given the similarities in style, content and delivery on this album. The beauty and the beast framework created by Lanegan and Campbell is equalled here by the melodic and gentle contributions, in particular by Rumor (Shake Off Your Shoes, Hangover Me) and Buffy Sainte-Marie (Call a Cab Cinderella), a contrast to the whiskey soaked, sixty a day sounding baritone drawl deployed by Love.
Country folk and blues has seldom sounded darker yet sweeter.
LONESOME HIGHWAY
It is produced by Love and O’Connell under the watchful eye of Greg Fleming, better known as Wizard, whose previous work includes The Chemical Brothers, X Press 2 and DJ Fresh. It boasts a most impressive list of guest vocalists including Rumor, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Aurora Dawn and June Miles-Kingston. The closing title track also includes a spoken rendition by Pete Doherty of the Wilfred Owen’s poem "Dulce et decorum est ." No less impressive is the quality and diversity of the musicians involved in the recording, including Segs Jennings (The Ruts), Seamus Beaghen (Madness) and Jay Darlington (Madness).
Given the ingredients it’s surprising that the album is actually much closer to late night bedsit listening than the dancefloor, and saddens, stimulates and soothes in equal measures. A reference point would be the Mark Lanegan and Isobel Campbell trilogy of albums Sunday at Devil Dirt, Ballad of The Broken Seas and Hawk. Love and Lanegan could have been separated at birth given the similarities in style, content and delivery on this album. The beauty and the beast framework created by Lanegan and Campbell is equalled here by the melodic and gentle contributions, in particular by Rumor (Shake Off Your Shoes, Hangover Me) and Buffy Sainte-Marie (Call a Cab Cinderella), a contrast to the whiskey soaked, sixty a day sounding baritone drawl deployed by Love.
Country folk and blues has seldom sounded darker yet sweeter.
LONESOME HIGHWAY
HOW TO WRITE A COUNTRY SONG? GET A BAD WOMAN AND A GOOD HANGOVER SAYS LARRY LOVE!
‘WE LOVE HANGOVERS - THEY'RE VERY INSPIRING'
'I speak to songwriting duo O’Connell & Love to find out how a stormy winter week in Hastings, afternoon drinking, Johnny Cash’s American Recordings and some serious hangovers all helped to create one of the best albums of the year…'
READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW AND EXTENDED INTERVIEW WITH BRENDAN AND LARRY AT sayitwithgarageflowers
'I speak to songwriting duo O’Connell & Love to find out how a stormy winter week in Hastings, afternoon drinking, Johnny Cash’s American Recordings and some serious hangovers all helped to create one of the best albums of the year…'
READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW AND EXTENDED INTERVIEW WITH BRENDAN AND LARRY AT sayitwithgarageflowers