Accident Clearinghouse - Volume I Saginaw Sweetheart FLAC

Tracklist

Notes

Quillan RoeMike BradyJeff TranberryRaenaldo Moon

Rev. Matt MarohlRufus Moon
Bio: The Accident Clearinghouse Story

Accident Clearinghouse is a four piece band from Champlin, MN, that plays Country & Western music. The core of the band is: Quillan Roe on lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Mike Brady on electric guitar, banjo, mandolin, and vocals; Jeff Tranberry on upright-bass Raenaldo Moon on washboard, sand blocks, coconuts, juice-harp, and back-up vocals. Part-Time members include Rev. Matt Marohl on pedal-steel guitar; Prof. Kevin Riach on drums; and Rufus Moon on washboard and vocals

Volume I : Saginaw Sweetheart & Volume II : Absolute Collision

This band from Minnesota makes some rip-roaring good music with quirky, alternative vocals. It sounds to me like The Jayhawks with a bit more of a country swing and less harmony. Released as two separate CD packages, both volumes contain a mixture of fast-moving guitar-oriented songs about love and broken promises along with an occasional small-town daddy-get-your-gun style ballad. I definitely prefer Volume 1. It has a slightly more alternative feel, with vocal touches of the old Athens band Let's Active and the "tortured artist" quality of Palace Music. However, the obvious influence here is Uncle Tupelo, which I didn't realize until I heard track 7, I Got Friends. It sounds like something Jay Farrar could have written in his early days. And, many of the 19 songs have an upbeat Wilco sound. Besides that, one song even references Jay Farrar.

Volume 2 is a bit more country, and the songs are less memorable. While the instrumentation is better, the songwriting is less inspired: "So we set off for the Coast, with a kiss and a toast" sings lead singer Quillan Roe, making me wonder if coast and toast should ever be used in a rhyme.

Still, either volume would make a great edition to any collector's library as an example of band just feeling its roots and getting started. Nominated for Best Country act at the 1998 Minnesota Music awards, this is one band to keep an eye on.