If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Leslie Ryan McKellar According to Shovels & Rope, their upcoming album is going to be their heavy metal album. Well, heavy metal for them. As Michael Trent says, " It’s not heavy metal, but in our guts, it feels a bit like Heavy Metal ." You'll get what he means when you hear the first single from the album. "Domino" is still based in the folk and early rock 'n' roll we've come to adore from Shovels & Rope, but you can see why the South Carolina duo would call this their heavy metal album. Instead of sounding like heavy metal, "Domino" contains the spirit of heavy metal. There is just the slightest hint of the attitude and edge of heavy metal that is typically missing in a Shovels & Rope song. It still sounds like them, but just the slightest hint of a band expanding their sound after ten years is always welcome. You can watch the video for "Domino" below. Manticore is due out February 18 on Dualtone. You can ...

Photo via Facebook It's nice to see an artist cover their friends and peers instead of just their heroes and predecessors. It's a throwback to the early days of rock 'n' roll when everybody covered everybody. Shovels & Rope are masters of the cover, releasing three albums of covers (so far!) As part of Dualtone's twentieth anniversary, they were asked to cover Shakey Graves' "Dearly Departed." The original is a powerful, uplifting anthem, with foot stomping drums and an absolutely scream-along worthy chorus. Shovels & Rope slow the song way, way down and turn it into a quiet ballad. It's an interesting choice, since Shakey Graves' original features Esme Patterson and would have been absolutely perfect as is for the husband/wife duo of Shovels & Rope. But, the best covers are ones where the coverer puts their own spin on the song, and that's ultimately what this one is. You can listen to Shovels & Rope's version of "...