The Heckhounds Sing the 'Real' Blues
By Art Edelstein Arts Correspondent - Published: January 16, 2009
OK, I admit it. I had no idea what a "heckhound" is and how that mightrelate to a Montpelier-based electric blues trio. A little research was in order and, I found a few citations on the Internet. I learned that aheck hound is "a slightly politer, and not quite as dangerous, distant cousin of the ferocious hellhound."
Stillon shaky mythological ground, Wikipedia told me that "A hellhound is ademonic dog of Hell found in mythology, folklore and fiction." These creatures "typically have features such as an unnaturally large size, ablack fur color, glowing red eyes, super strength or speed, ghostly phantom characteristics, and sometimes even the ability to talk.Hell hounds are often associated with fire, and may have fire-basedabilities and appearances."
The band that produced the album"Bad Dog" may have pretensions toward demonism and "ghostly phantom characteristics," but they're far milder than their name might suggest.
That said, the music this trio produces is quite good.
Most blues trios consist of guitar, bass guitar and drums: Think ZZ Top orGeorge Thorogood and the Destroyers. The Heckhounds have gone a slightly different route, substituting a second guitar/harmonica forthe bass. This gives their music a somewhat less dense sound, while adding more bounce and dance ability to the music.
Hal Mayforth is the primary guitarist, singer and songwriter here. Michael Murdock splits his time between second guitar and harmonica also adding vocals and some song writing. Kevin Morrison holds down the drummer's chair.
What these three fine musicians produce is contemporary blues that is firmly rooted in the music of their influences. On their Web page they cite Son House, Charlie Patton, Blind Boy Fuller, Willie Brown, Albert King,Muddy Waters, Mance Lipscomb, Mississippi Fred McDowell, T-Bone Walker,Otis Rush, John Hammond Jr., John Lee Hooker, Freddie King, Little Walter, Frank Stokes, Tom Waits, Sonny Boy Williamson, Skip James,Othar Turner and The Shaggs as important influences. And their music reflects these blues icons.
The band manages its way around not having a bassist by using a lower register on guitar to produce bass notes, and miking the bass drum on Morrison's kit so there is the appearance of a bottom to the music.
More importantly, Mayforth and Murdock write very good blues songs. While new material, these songs sound as old as the idiom of electric blues into the 1940s. It would be hard to discern Murdock's opening "Bad Luck and Trouble" from any blues tune to emerge from Chicago in the past five decades.
So strong is the songwriting here that the band's only cover track, theSon House song "Depot Blues," does not stand out as coming from an earlier era. The other nine tracks on this album leave the listener wondering how he might have missed hearing them on albums by the masters. Of course, "Nobody Knows," "Black Cadillac," "Lucky LittleGirl," "Bad Reputation," "Black Cat," "I Bought My Baby a Wig," "BigBoned Woman" and "When I Look over My Shoulder" are not songs by the masters … but they could be.
Both writers here hone to standard blues riffs, 12-bar formats, and solid uncomplicated beats, but they have concocted lyrics that contain somewhat less sexual "innuendo" than found on earlier blues albums. The sexual ideas are there, but there seems to be less emphasis on the grittier aspects of man/woman interaction. It's sort of "new age" blues.
Don't take this as a negative comment. I like the take Mayforth and Murdock have on life.It's their life, not the life of musicians trying to imitate black bluesmen from the South.
Special kudos to Mayforth whose vocals are solid, without gymnastics his vocal chords could not reach.Murdock's harmonic playing is fine but there's not enough of it, and I wish he'd overdubbed some more on the cuts where he plays guitar.Morrison plays as if he has nothing to prove. The beat is there,sometimes little more than sticks on rim. A power drummer flailing away he is not.
If you want to hear Heckhound and their take on the blues they are playing this Sunday at 3 at Langdon Street Café in Montpelier.