Andrew Gravel is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter of the very talented band, The Gravel Project. Primarily a quartet, the group mostly consists of the aforementioned Gravel, Zach Jagentenfl on bass, Tom Major on drums, and Paul Wolstencroff on the Hammond B3. Their ability on their respective instruments is the key factor in making their 2010 album, More Ways Than One, so enjoyable. It takes until the third song, the jazz instrumental, “Arugula Politics” to fully realize just how good this band is, but once realized, the impression lasts until the album’s end.
The lead-off track, “Dollar Bill” is a kind of standard blues-rock fare, with lyrics that flirt with being a touch too “preachy” in their discussion of the recession of ’08 and ’09. The following track, “Too Many Drivers” follows the oft-heard rock/blues theme of comparing women and cars. Despite some of the obvious lines, the song is a good piece of fun with a fantastic tone and some great musical backing. “Arugula Politics” is where the band takes off; gone are the lyrics and in their place, Dann Friedman laying down some fantastic saxophone. The other immediate stand-out is Major’s drumming. To go from playing the kind of standard 4/4 blues rhythm to a more complex jazz beat isn’t the easiest of transitions, but he nails it. It’s on this song as well that Jordan Gravel substitutes on the Hammond and his interplay with Friedman is fantastic.
Andrew Gravel’s ability as a guitarist features more on the bluesy songs towards the album’s second half. “Lost” is a positively enthralling song, likely the best on the album. While Gravel can effectively carry any lyric he sings, his lyrics aren’t the most impressive, though the band certainly makes up for this in energy and performance ability. On “Lost” though, Gravel’s imagery contained within the first verse, “I walked along an empty road/about 3 days ago/shadows seem to follow me/reflected off the snow” followed by the sighting of a “blood-stained sky” is picture-perfect. Gravel accompanies this with stellar riffing and soloing.
The reggae influenced track, “Feeling Good”, further showcases the talents of the band, especially highlighting Jagentenfl as a funky bassist. More over, it’s also a convincing reggae song though at this point in the album, it’s little surprise that The Gravel Project can pull this genre off with such ease. Their knack for arranging songs is one of their stronger suits, whether it be with something original like “Feeling Good” or the cover they do of The Beatles’ “I’ll Cry Instead”. Though a seemingly random choice of a Beatles song from A Hard Day’s Night, the original country like sound carries over well with this fresh blues/rock arrangement Gravel gives it.
The only true misstep of a song of the album’s nine tracks is the roughly two minute instrumental, “Mindstream” which serves as a lead-in to “Lost”. As previously mentioned, “Lost” is a fantastic song, but “Mindstream” is really lackluster. “Lost” doesn’t need any kind of lead-in, and it would’ve been better for the album to have another true song rather than a weak instrumental. But again, this is the only real forgettable song. Even the uniquely, sparsely arranged “My Baby” is compelling with its loving lyrics and reliance on voice and two guitars (electric and bass).
The album closes on a similar note to where it started. “Blues for LA” is another straight ahead but fantastic blues rocker akin to “Lost”. It’s fortunate The Gravel Project chose this as their closer as it serves as a reminder of just what kind of band this is for the most part. As capable as they are as jazz musicians, reggae or funk rockers, they are, at core, a blues band with a high degree of talent. The lack of a consistent sound hinders the cohesiveness of More Ways Than One as an artistic piece. But there’s also too much musical ability featured here to not find enjoyment in it. So though it may not be perfect from a structural standpoint, it’s still a welcome addition to any blues or rock fan’s catalog.
Review by Heath Andrews
