Radiotones

There is something charmingly ironic about naming your band the Radiotones when your singer sounds like Gargamel after a night of hard drinking and loose women. This charm is doubled when the rest of your band deliver such a banged-out country-blues sound that your record is bound to get about as much radio play as a Neil Perry b-side. Despite all this, the Radiotones have managed to make a thoroughly entertaining album. With the stumbling swagger of songs like "Another Chance” and "One More Heartbreak,” the band’s primary influences seem to be Ronnie Hawkins and grain liquor. Each of the tracks on Bound to Ride reek of missed Al-Anon meetings and broken barstools, giving the music an intensity that is vacant from many similar, more hobbyist artist’s music. More than just a drunken novelty though, the Radiotones’ rugged sound gives life to the worn out blues conventions they employ.