In the past half hour I've lost over $350 in poker. Not real money, thank God. That is why computers are so lovely. It's got all of the excitement and sweat of real poker without the annoying burden of actually breaking the bank. Goldrush is poker playing music. They have a weird mix of sound that could allow them to share a concert bill with My Morning Jacket and The Violet Burning. The music has that fried, southern indie rock feel to it with the emotional connection of a band like The Violet Burning.
You can fire a pistol randomly at an indie rock festival and chances are you would hit a band that has a southern or country influence. Yet, while most of those bands are, at best, holding a high pair in their hand, Goldrush is sitting easy with the musical equivalent of a flush. In 5 card draw a flush is quite a find. Even in Texas Hold'em, an easier version of poker, a flush is still a 95% guaranteed win.
Goldrush is one of those rare bands who you hardly notice what genre they are playing. (Which is good because I tend to not be very fond of southern indie rock.) You get too distracted by everything they do right. They play their instruments without flaw. The songs are composed with the best of them. Unexpected things happen in the song without it being distracting. Their vocalist isn't too pretty when he sings, nor too rough, nor does he try to be anything he's not. Heck, he even knows how to infuse the proper emotion into a song without becoming too sappy. His voice actually reminded me of Jeff Tweedy, which really gels into the music well. And best of all, there isn't a lousy song in the bunch. Even their slower, ballads are exciting, and that's saying a lot.
I highly recommend this album. They are so much better than anyone else that I've heard in their genre it's not even funny.
3.5/4
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