August Wells – Here in the wild (FIFA Records)

Back to the Best of 2015 Mid Year Review. Here’s a tune that featured in that set from a group playing in Ireland soon and released on local Cork stalwarts FIFA Records.

“August Wells is Ken Griffin (the creative mind behind the groups Rollerskate Skinny, Kid Silver and Favourite Sons) and John Rauchenberger (New York pianist who has played with The Favourite Sons, Maggie Estep and Daniel Carter among others). Their music has just begun to make its mark, but already has been described as “strange other worldly chamber music”, “Sinatra singing Lou Reed songs” and “a secret marriage of Willy Nelson and Lee Hazlewood”. It could also be described as songs to walk across your troubled heart.”

Interesting reference points, says you. On this song, that core duo of piano and voice is augmented by a gorgeous sympathetic arrangement of strings, flute and saxophone. Sympathetic to the song. Enhancing it.

It’s kinda louche, a bit sad and very lovely and in a certain light it’s almost like a flip to the above Mr Reed’s ‘Walk on the Wild Side’. A slower, looking back rather than forward version. A paean to ageing not youth version. An older and none the wiser version maybe.

Griffin’s voice is a great croon. I’m not normally a fan of vibrato but he makes that work too. Mind you, singing lines as good as these it might not matter whether you sway or not.

Take your brother
Take your sister
Walk them across their troubled hearts

It is quite wonderful.

They tour Ireland in September and sound like a can’t miss.





*Second single ‘Come on in out of that night’ is another soulful beauty, with the air of a Stax classic about it in the yearning vocal and soothing horns.