Dan Sartain - Join Dan Sartain (One Little Indian)
4/5
By: Keri Kennedy
You've most likely heard of Dan Sartain. No? Well you certainly should have, and you definitely will. Soon. 'Join Dan Sartain' is the sophomore LP proper from the 23-year-old Alabaman, a man with a liking for Ol' Dirty Bastard, Transformers and seafood amongst other things.
Since the release of debut 'Dan Sartain vs. The Serpientes', Sartain has developed something of a cult status on the London circuit, playing to excited crowds from the likes of the tiny upstairs room of The Enterprise in Chalk Farm to supporting The Kooks at The Astoria. This record, laid down at the legendary Toe Rag Studios with the help of an old friend on drums flown in especially for the job from his hometown Birmingham, USA - allegedly said drummer had never left the States, so recording was almost doomed as his passport application went awry - and with Liam Watson behind the controls.
'Join Dan Sartain' stirs memories of hearing previous Toe Rag inhabitants The White Stripes for the first time; lo-fi but filling the room, basic yet also with endless depth. A tall order, but you can imagine what it might have been like to be around during the first era of Johnny Cash (Sartain already having been touted as the Cash for this generation many a time, and we're finding it hard to disagree).
Most of Sartain's songs tell a story, 'Drama Queens' for example is a frenetic tale of suicide and of being alone, while 'Totem Pole', which sees him falling for girls who'll only break his heart, with its rolling percussion, twanging guitar and castanets is a perfect soundtrack to a spaghetti western. Live favourite 'Flight Of The Finch', however - yes, it's about a finch - is calypso infused with horns. Sartain, sporting a pencil moustache and a tux crooning in a tiki lounge, is an image that's impossible to get out of your mind. The same applies for 'Besame Mucho' (Sartain's version of a much covered track, translated: 'Kiss Me A Lot'), which is comparatively elaborate, with strings and flamenco guitars, Sartain capturing the style expertly.
Away from the subject of birds and calypso, Dan gets political with 'Thought It Over', a basic three-chord strum with lines such as "if somebody on the top is a crook, they're gonna have to move over... who takes my money away, when I'm workin' for minimum wage?". He's getting serious. 'The World Is Gonna Break Your Little Heart' stays on the stern note, almost a lullaby, about being built up for a great life only to be broken down by the reality of hard work and paying your rent and taxes. Lead single 'Replacement Man' is full of vocal echo and over production, while highlight 'Hangers On' is gritty rock'n'roll with crackling drums, frenetic guitar and an urgent vocal, also featuing the absurd yet marvellously delivered line: "they'll never understand, baby, I'm the tiger man".
'Join Dan Sartain' is a collection of post-modern rock'n'roll, full of attitude and charisma, just like the wee fella himself. If Dan can create music like this with such adeptness at his tender age, we'd better watch out for what he's capable of next.
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