Alan Charing - Stitch

Alan Charing

Stitch

(LazyBone Records)

Rating: 3.6 of 5

Years after the deadlock of his last songwriting vehicle (A.C. Cotton), Portland troubadour Alan Charing has finally balanced himself on top of the dirt heap, with the shovel in his hand. The solo outing Stitch, his first release of any kind in six years, is the proof that he has let bygones be bygones with his inner demons. However, he did not completely go stag. Joining him on the project are members of Richmond Fontaine and of Laura Gibson’s band, with mixing duties assigned to Mike Coykendall.

Unveiled here, overtop of some plain ol’ rock and roll, are all of the loose ends tied together. Not having given a damn what anyone thought, Charing crafted the record that he wanted to listen to and no one else. His delivery is to-the-point, but not harsh. Charing can show that he knows how to shake it off with a little Dylanesque breeziness.

The first two cuts are choice--big meaty choruses and all. Charging in with the vinegary “Leftover Life To Kill”, Alan runs through his lines with a sneer. Segueing into the woozy, alley cat romp, “Cold Milk, Big Bombs”, Charing has got the whole dive bar swinging. He does not fall short too often here; just when you think he loses pace, the tempo recovers and the lag is gone.

Stitch tends to be a little too undeviating in instrumentation. There are a few strings or horns thrown in, but Charing keeps the format on lockdown with the ever-present accompaniment of rootsy acoustic guitar chops, bluesy lead, upright piano, and drums. It still makes for a hell of a good time on the second-to-last selection, “Whiskey Sours”. Other standouts include the meandering “Disasterpiece”, the darkly revealing quirk of “I Can Feel The Wheel” and the sticking point, “Long Goodbye”.

Stitch’s power is less showing than growing. Opening statements like ‘Something’s missing, makes no difference to me’ may leave you unimpressed at the onset, still the reward comes with patience. Clean your slate and go back to track one; this record’s captivation is only fully realized with repeated listens.

Long Goodbye - Alan Charing

The review posted at ZapTown

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