Review: Exhibit(s) new CD worth the wait

First off, let me say there are two things wrong with the new CD from local favorites the Exhibit(s).

One is the title: Avery Ellis Presents The Exhibit(s) in "Devil Took the Wheel": Music from, inspired by, and completely unrelated to the movie Hide and Creep. For brevity's sake, and my own sanity, we'll just call it Devil Took the Wheel.

The other problem is the length of time it took to get the new CD out. The band's last album, One Possible Outcome of Attraction, came out in 2001, and Hide and Creep, the film inspiration for some of the songs, premiered at the Sidewalk film festival two years ago. Five years is a long, long time between records for any artist, especially a local band.

But both those complaints can be easily forgiven, as the new disc puts forth incredibly strong guitar-driven rock and roll, with no apologies from those involved. It is a darker, stronger work than its predecessor that still keeps the eclectic wit and sense of humor that has come to be expected from the band.

Lots of things have changed in the five years since the last disc, including the addition of Carlos Pino on guitars and keyboards, and new(ish) bassist Kenn McCracken joining original frontman Eric McGinty and drummer Chance Shirley. The lineup works well together, with McGinty and Pino providing guitar heroics rarely seen in any band, and Shirley and McCracken holding down the fort with a solid rhythm section.

McGinty likes his noise loud and raucous, and that is evident on several tracks on the new CD. On "Plot", "Line", "Hangup", and "Timesharing", you can almost imagine that the Pixies and Radiohead had a lovechild; low, slow, angst-ridden passages merge seamlessly into screaming, balls-out rock. In a similar vein, the bonus track "redsong" starts as simple guitar chords, eventually evolving into a multi-layered psychedelic celebration.

In addition to the music, the lyrics are darker on this album as well. McGinty has angst down to a science, as shown in "Hangup":

Holding on to an empty cradle
Before the line goes completely dead
You can almost hear the breathing of
a hundred thousand faceless voices
Questioning themselves and choices
What if I could do it all again?

McGinty and Pino also work well together on "Theme in G" and the title track (unlisted on the CD, but included as a bonus track). Both of these songs have classic-rock anthem written all over them, as "Theme" would be at home on an early Zepplin album, and echoes of the Allman Brothers can be heard in passages from "Devil Took the Wheel", thanks in part to the guitar interplay in the middle of the song as well as its seven-minutes-plus length.

There is also an eclectic edge to the band which is displayed in two tracks that could almost be called alt-country: The opening instrumental "dEaD bAD", and "Lost My Way", a song of redemption that could be the strongest track on the album.

All in all, this is an incredible album, and it is hoped that some wise record exec somewhere gets a chance to listen. It would be a shame for music this good to be kept in Birmingham.