LEO Weekly has Spotify playlists for each Listen Local column featuring selected tracks from each reviewed release. Check them out here!
Ron Whitehead
The Way of the Heart: Old Age Suite in Four Movements – EP
It’s not every day you get an email from a living legend asking if you’d review their new album. In fact, I believe I can count on one finger the number of times that has happened to me. And that one time was from U.S. National Lifetime Beat Poet Laureate, author of over 30 books and more than 40 albums, and the man that Hunter S. Thompson himself called “crazy as nine loons,” Ron Whitehead. On The Way of the Heart: Old Age Suite in Four Movements, the latest release in Whitehead’s long and storied career, he once again teams up with composer Gabriel Walker, who is a legend in his own right. Together Whitehead’s words are the grass, the trees, and the sky that you lose yourself in, while Walker’s music is the breeze that you feel all around you. This is beauty, wonderment, happiness, excitement, curiosity, love and sadness all at once. It’s a reminder that while life is truly a blessing, it’s also only a fleeting moment. Throughout this all-too short EP, Whitehead expounds his truths and wisdoms that could only have been learned through a lifetime of experience, while Walker’s score gently guides the listener through synesthetic soundscapes that bring Whitehead’s words to life. Whitehead’s poetry paints the picture and Walker’s score is the wall in which it hangs. Together they provide the listener with a journey through every emotion. Although the focus here is on growing old, common themes of art, love, togetherness, and joy are always present; which, in a nutshell, also seems to describe Whitehead’s own life. This is absolutely essential listening, and I give it my highest recommendation.
Addults
The Wrong Windows – album
Going into listening to this album for the first time, the only information I had on the band was the two-sentence bio sent to me by vocalist/guitarist Mike Karman that read, “Addults are a 4-piece band from Louisville KY doing indie rock, weirdo folk, garage-art, etc. There is a strong focus on painting lyrical pictures and not being too limited by genre.” Well Mr. Karman, you’ve certainly piqued my interest! This could be anything. So feeling a bit like a kid at Christmas, I hit play not knowing quite what to expect but excited to find out. And immediately I’m swept up and fully immersed in the weird and wonderful world of Addults. What you get here are 12 extremely well-crafted songs played four guys, (and a few guest musicians), that obviously have a wealth of experience behind their instruments. Musical comparisons run the gamut and really depend on which song you’re listening to, but you can certainly catch glimpses of Wilco, Pavement, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, NRBQ, Tom Waits, Lou Reed, Leonard Cohen, and even The Beatles, and David Bowie throughout their songs. Obviously this is not your run-of-the-mill indie rock band here. The lyrics are heavily metaphoric, yet read like beautiful poems. Each word is as meticulously thought out as the music that accompanies it. If you’re not already on the Addults Bandcamp page buying this, then plan on doing so ASAP. This is something very special here!
Jane Deere
When the body rejects the soul, signs begin to show. – album
As a trans woman living in a deeply red state, Cory Liner has obviously been through a lot of emotion al trauma. But it is trauma that she is reclaiming on her own terms through Jane Deere, a character of Liner’s creation. In Deere, Liner sees a “powerful, god-like figure” who is “damaged and in a constant cycle of healing.” Deere is her voice, her escape, her way to “have more fun by disconnecting from the more painful moments.” The mix of electronic, trap, pop and rock music create a dark, mysterious, ethereal and sexy atmosphere that serves as the perfect vessel to bring to life the real star here, which are the lyrics. As explained in the bio, “Liner’s real-life experiences inspire most of her album; then Jane dramatizes that into a poetic fantasy,” and the results are downright staggering. Desperation, despair, heartache and pain, (both emotional and physical), form the basis of these songs, and it is told through honest and unflinching eyes. However, it is the power, strength, will, and self-confidence to overcome and control the situation that makes these more than just lyrics, but inspirational stories of triumph over adversity. It’s as if Liner, through Deere, is telling the world “Hit me with everything you’ve got. I’ll take it all and ram it right back down your throat!” This is true power here, folks! Written, recorded, and produced by Liner, this album has been three years in the making, and the message makes it all worth the struggle. Headphones on for this one!
Tin Zelkova
“Ain’t What You Was” / “Loser” / “Juliet” – singles
One thing you can never call Tin Zelkova is lazy. Easily one of the most prolific rock bands in Louisville, they sent me “Ain’t What You Was” to review right around Halloween. Since then, they’ve already released two additional new singles, (three songs in less than four months). Since I fell behind on reviews, I’ve decided to give them all a spin. “Ain’t What You Was” is song talking directly to and about someone dealing with addiction that is, oddly enough, set to a very upbeat tune with an extremely catchy guitar riff that I can’t get out of my head. Think early 70’s rock like Rush’s first two albums, Free, and T. Rex mixed with a tiny flare of Southern rock. “Loser” is a tune about the end of a toxic relationship that takes a bit of a darker turn musically and is driven by a somewhat heavier, more plodding beat. This one is certainly more in the modern rock camp, but with that trademark 70’s classic rock feel that Tin Zelkova is known for. The band really drives this one home in the last minute of the song. And finally the brand new track “Juliet”, which was just released on Valentine’s Day. Loosely based on Romeo and Juliet but influenced by real relationships, this one has a great bluesy stomp to it and combines a nice mix of both classic and modern rock that this band is so damn good at! So if you’re keeping score, add another three solid tracks to an ever-growing catalog of nothing but solid tracks from Tin Zelkova!
The Response
Living Dead in the Night – EP
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, those hopeless romantics known as The Response return with four more beautiful love ballads. Although some might say that I’m full of shit and this is actually their horror-themed EP that came out around Halloween last year and is just now being reviewed because I fell way behind, but to those people I say have you not heard the super silky, sexy sounds of the gravel and broken glass throated combo of “The Heartbreak Kid” Donnie Vagrant and “The Total Package” Sean Magnum? Not only are they one-half of the sexiest, most punk-rockin’ band this side of the Mississippi, (you just have to see them live to understand that), but now they have those old wrestler nicknames that I also just gave them to boot. And if that wasn’t enough, they also host the Partners & Pals Podcast, (which you should be listening to). But if I must be serious; this is raw, fun, old school punk rock that’ll beat your ass and buy you a beer afterwards. Think The Ramones, Sloppy Seconds, and The Queers’ early material. And I gotta mention the great cover art by Rick Gideons/Fifty Eleven Media. So if you’re planning a romantic candlelight dinner by the fireplace, skip the Al Green and Marvin Gaye, this is what you’re going to want to put on to set the mood!
Want to see your music reviewed in LEO Weekly? Louisville and Southern Indiana-based bands/artists, send a link to your music along with a band/artist bio, a high-resolution pic of the release’s cover art, and any additional information that may be helpful for the review, (the more, the better), to music@leoweekly.com.
Related Stories
Listen Local: New Louisville Music You Need To Hear!
This article appears in Jan 31 – Feb 13, 2025.