The Reviews
561 days ago
Daily Progress Article
Guano Boys offer brief island-themed getaway.
By Jedd Ferris / Daily Progress correspondent
March 9, 2007
The Guano Boys can easily be called a good-time party band.
After all, at first listen, the grooves of this local eight-piece collective are immediately infectious, filled with breezy island styles ranging from roots reggae to calypso that just make you want to dance.
But with a listen to its last album “Guano Happens” – recorded in 2002 but well worth a revisit – it’s apparent there’s a lot of depth in this pot of musical Carribean spice.
Lead by frontman Chris Leva on guitar and vocals, the band mixes through an era maze of tropical flavor, moving from old-school ska romps (” ‘T’is”) to Bob Marley’s early R&B flavor (“Don’t Fail Me Now”) to hints of more ethereal instrumental exploration (“Just Arrived”).
It’s on the latter where the potential depth of this outfit shines past the haze of first impressions.
While Leva does most of the arranging, the disc is full of local all-stars, including a thick horn section that features sax ace Bobby Read and select appearances by John D’earth on trumpet.
The rhythms are simple and grounded, thanks to the tight backbeat of drummer Spencer Lathrop and the late Dave Grant (bass), who passed away during the final stages of the recording project.
Jeff Saine’s steel guitar also adds hints of psychedelic surf rock.
He leads the eerie journey on a dubbed out version of Santo and Johnny’s late-’50s instrumental “Sleepwalk.”
While this band could definitely venture outward, right now we can call ourselves lucky to have them as a local treasure.