Many great Hollywood Westerns were shot in the San Fernando Valley, so it almost seems fitting that an Americana/Texas/Country Rock tour de force like Brady Harris is actually encamped in North Hollywood. For the unfamiliar, NoHo is the fame-adjacent foothold in the Valley that is closer to the Sherman Oaks Galleria than the Hollywood Walk of Fame. If you’ve ever driven past a NoHo dive bar late rocking late into night, chances are, the Brady Harris Band was holding court inside.
NoHo is the setting for the Brady Harris Band’s latest EP, NoHo Confidential, a Texas tornado — or at least a frisky breeze — of John Lennon and George Harrison-esque pop songs that will right likely appeal to a wide range of big sky music fans, including those of John Mayer, Wilco, Ben Folds, the Civil Wars and the Traveling Wilburys. Intoxicating originals are what you belly up to the bar band for. Forget Robin Thicke’s ‘Blurred Lines,” BHB’s ‘Mexico‘ has been my song of the summer; it’s the perfect soundtrack for a long hot night and ice cold margarita. ‘Blue‘ is an easy, breezy, jazzy affair that also goes nowhere fast for all the right reasons.
Lead single, ‘Kate, Stay Late’ is a jauntier track — one that would feel right home on a Jeff Lynne album (if Jeff Lynne wasn’t busy re-recording his back catalog).
Now here’s where things get interesting. The EP also includes the band’s winning take on Blondie’s ‘Heart of Glass’. Inventive covers are Harris’s forte, so submitted exclusively for your POPDOSE listening pleasure, here are his equally clever Americana re-imaginings of Motorhead’s ‘Ace of Spades’ and Grace Jones’ ‘I’ve Seen That Face Before (Libertango).
Enjoy em here in all their glory:
Brady Harris – I’ve Seen That Face Before (Libertango)
This first track is a limited time a POPDOSE exclusive by the Brady Harris Duo (Harris and the band’s producer/multi-instrumentalist John Adair). Marc Bernal (bass, vocals) and Steve Markowitz (drums, vocals) round out the band in the studio and on stage.
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NoHo Confidential is currently available via bandcamp for the lo-lo price of $4.
Connect with the Brady Harris Band on facebook.
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