Cassette Review: Matthew Squires "Tambaleo" (Already Dead Tapes)

There are a number of different ways to describe the music of Matthew Squires but I think my favorite is to call him electric folk.   Is that a thing?  I feel like I'm making it up but if I research it I'll likely find out I'm using it incorrectly.   So you know how most folk artists have an acoustic guitar?   That's what this music reminds me of only with the acoustic guitar being replaced by an electric one.   More so, it has the sound of bands I don't listen to but have heard of before, such as Wilco and labels like Merge.    I don't know.   That might not be right though so don't hold me to it.

With hints of the Flaming Lips and TMBG, Matthew Squires brings out this sound that can have banjos in it (I believe) and it falls somewhere between Neil Young and John Denver with a dash of Daniel Johnston thrown in.    He sings about leaving the love songs to the pros and his songs definitely have that lyrical aspect to him that I feel cannot be taught-- it's something either you have or you don't and he does.    He also sings about Elvis for a bit and that's always welcome with me.

From lyrics about God to those twangy chords that remind me of The Get Up Kids "Walking On A Wire" (which is their best album to me), there was a time in the early '00's where a lot of bands were going country (see: Limbeck and fall down a rabbithole from there) and this has that certain appeal to it as well but in a more genuine way than someone trying to cash in on a trend (I like Limbeck but a lot of bands back then were trying to fit in)   But lyrically, I enjoy this cassette more than anything I heard in those days.    It reminds me of Sorority Noise in terms of lyrics but obviously the music is different.

There is also this quality to the music I can't quite put my finger on.   It's got a bit of that Blind Melon feel to it (Don't listen to the radio songs, the other ones) but there is just this band from the 1990's I feel like comes out in this but I can't quite find the name.   I want to say something like Len but that's not right.    In any case, "Dead or Dying" and "Shape of Your Heart" are two of my favorite songs on here and if you don't get them stuck in your head we can't be friends.

$5 // Edition of 250 // https://alreadydeadtapes.bandcamp.com/album/ad237-matthew-squires-tambaleo