Having left his former band,
the Solid Goldsteins, the first solo album from
Brady Harris is a fresh mix of sparkling country-folk balladry and more stripped-down singer/songwriter fare. While some, like the opener "(You Know) I'll Remember You," fall near the
Gram Parsons tradition, many tracks recall the sound of early
Jayhawks albums, as
Harris' vocals are quite similar to those of
Gary Louris. When he records with a full band, as on "Ghost of You," the similarities are made even more apparent. The production allows for a very live organic sound, with drums and nice electric guitar leads filling out
Harris' songs nicely, though many of the tracks are solo with acoustic guitar. Where many songs visit traditional themes of lost love, as in the strongly country-tinged "The Hangover Song,"
Harris also displays his sharp wit as he apparently critiques open mic performers who take themselves too seriously in the rocking sing-a-long "All of You Suck." As an added bonus, four hidden tracks of solo alternate versions of some of the albums standout tracks are included. Overall, it's the intricately crafted nature of the songwriting that makes
Next Door to Nowhere work so well; a clean electric guitar line here, an unexpected chord change or backup vocal there, with the final product being one of the more satisfying obscure singer-songwriter albums of the last half of the 90's. ~ Matt Fink