Mercy definitely rules! That's my Liz Smith lead this month, and gosh I mean it. This is a great band, with great songs that rock and groove. Mercy Rules, the Midwest power trio, is ruled by Heidi Ore. One of the coolest and rarest of rock species. The female bass player-singer.
Heidi stands tall on her new release, Providence, on Relativity Records. Her voice teeters on the edge of scariness sometimes. She takes it to the brink and just when you think she's going to go over, she pulls back with a clear sincerity. Listen to Tell Tomorrow, you can hear how Heidi and the band drive, drop, crank and stop. This is a trademark on this album. Dynamic changes from hard to sweet.
This band puts out a lot of sound for three people. Everyone's playing is super fab. The bass parts by Heidi and guitar by Jon Taylor create phat, juicy harmonies that weave into Ron Albertsons rockdidiliacious drumming seamlessly. The title track Providence is all drive. Which is what the song is about, falling asleep at the wheel. This really happened to the band on the way back from a show. Apparently they all lived but the van took a beating as the photo on the liner shows. Releasing you from the fear of Providence is Stumble. This sweet tune in three opens with the band and a violin. I like the words on this one. Stumble is about the realization that we are all essentially alone. How unchangeable some things are, how we are all stuck with ourselves.
The lyrics on this record are so complimented by the music, it's hard to imagine them apart. It's an example of music that makes the lyrics mean more. I guess my only complaint is with the backup vocals. When you can hear them, which isn't often, they sound like the distant cry of bleating seals.
This album is good at first listen, and it grows on you. By the way, the band's name is derived from the mercy rule in little league. It's the two run rule that prevents one team from humiliating the other. No worry about that here, unless you're sharing the same bill with Mercy Rule.
