Review of Smoking Gun Album by Lady of The Sunshine
Review of Lady of The Sunshine’s album ‘Smoking Gun’
Lady of The Sunshine has to be one of the sillier monikers, especially when a bit of digging (Amongst what looks suspiciously like a bunch of label sponsored blogs) reveals that in fact it's a solo album from Angus Stone. Who? well over the past couple of years, whilst in partnership with achingly boho with sister Julia, the Australian has created a frisson of critical froth around their tweedy sunshine-folk, best demonstrated on releases such as Hollywood and Heart Full of Wine.
Young may hail from Sydney, but Smoking Gun is indebted mostly to the beaches and deserts of California. It does have a nice line in switchbacks however; whilst opener Silver Revolver and Home Sweet Home are plangent stoner rock (Complete with what sounds like a children's choir at the end of the latter) both the title track White Rose Parade are full of the bluesy, wasted chords of early Led Zeppelin.
It's a hazy dichotomy which occasionally makes interesting listening - Dean Man's Train shimmers with a croaky, wizened grace - but overall events suffer from a lack of originality, with Young ultimately revealed as no Stephen Malkmus or Wayne Coyne. Another guitar toting troubadour anyone? Thought not.
Andy Peterson
site - http://www.myspace.com/ladyofthesunshine
