Andrew Luttrell Band – Paint By Number$

The power of music to create an image in our heads and a feeling in our hearts is a special art form. The swelling of melodies and sculptures of music can immerse us in an artist’s talents, like a paint can opened wide over our heads. Andrew Luttrell Band has dipped their brush into multiple genres in their 2012 debut album, Paint by Number$. The album must be viewed as a collage. You must listen to it in its entirety to see the full picture each song collectively creates.

Showcasing their country and bluegrass hues early on, in the opening track “Landscape Plains,” it begins with dreamy guitar picking that builds up into a twangy rock rift. The traditional country percussion, fiddle, and organ come together with Luttrell’s guitar solos and character-developing lyrics to create a new shade of Western. On occasion, the jam band territory they delve into can hide the detailed stories crafted by Luttrell. It is only after a closer listen, that the inspiration drawn from a letter written by Vincent Van Gogh to his sister, Wilhelmina, a few months prior to his suicide, can be understood.

“Prodigal son holds a loaded gun beneath his eyes
Wilhelmina wishes she had never learned of his demise
On the landscape plains”

It is when the lyrics are showcased that the band really reaches their optimal efficiency. “Sister Goes Bad” tells of a nun leaving her convent and has Luttrell at his vocal expertise. The guitar work on this song is reminiscent of surf rock, carrying the listener off on a reverb-y wave along with our main character. In the closing track “Making Senses,” they end on that attention to detail song writing that makes this album so visual.

Though the band has its folk/country sensibility across the whole album they are successful in their heavier rock turns. The track “Sara Sota” puts Luttrell’s sneer through distortion accompanied by some groovy, rock guitar solos. His vocals fall a little flat in comparison to Tom Petty’s obvious influence, but the nod to the style and energy of blues/rock is masterfully captured. The same energy makes the hook heavy, ““You’re Stealing My Car,” one of the catchiest songs of Paint by Number$.

The heaviest track on the album, “Draggin’ the Line,” proves to be the best representation of the band’s varied capabilities and talents. It is here they really show us their impressive pallet of genres, coloring a painting of psych rock with blues organs and bright red enthusiasm. Sneering at his best, Luttrell finds the right frame to display his rock and roll alter ego and the instrumentalists create a large mural of live show energy. It’s the band at its grimiest, with its echoing chorus and commentary on class separation.

“Living under pressure every day,
City, state, and town in every way.”

Andrew Luttrell and his gifted band have reached deep into all their galleries of musical styles and day to day observations. Their album displays like a piece of Americana folk art, given a restyling by a well versed rock and roll poet. Sketching in details of country, folk, and rock, and then splattering with emotional depth, Pollock style, they have crafted a vivid sound. Paint by Number$ is for the curious listener, seeking to prove once again, that art is subjective. Andrew Luttrell Band has proved in different strokes that established styles of music are in the eye of the beholder.

Rating: 4/5 Stars!

Album Name: Paint by Number$
Date Released: March, 2012
Genre(s): Rock/Acoustic/Singer-Songwriter/Blues/Folk/Bluegrass/Jam-Band
Location: Baltimore, MD
Band Members: Andrew Luttrell: lead vocal, lead & rhythm electric guitar, mandolin, piano Shane Grimm: rhythm & lead electric guitar, lap steel, acoustic guitar, piano, backing vocal Mark Hutchins: bass guitar, acoustic & classical guitar, backing vocal Chris McGraw: drums, percussion, backing vocal with Dave Hadley: pedal steel, Kirk Kness: organ, Kevin Kutz: fiddle and Christopher Freeland: additional percussion
Record Label: Echoeseven Music LTD
Website: http://reverbnation.com/andrewluttrell
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/echoesevenmusic
Soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/andrewluttrell/landscape-plains-andrew
Bandcamp: http://andrewluttrell.bandcamp.com/

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