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Beth Garners second CD is a smooth blend of blues and rock with the tiniest bit of twang, a little softer and certainly more mature than her locally produced straight-ahead blues-rock debut from 2001. Addictions, released by the British label Armadillo Music, deals with love in several of its guises found, lost, clinging, yearning, and even self.

Garner, a graduate of Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts in Dallas, does lead vocals, most of the lead guitar, wrote 10 of the 13 songs, and co-produced. The twang mostly comes in her covers of Bruce Robisons Blame It On Me and Billy Joe Shavers Im Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But Im Going to be a Diamond Some Day).

Garners writing and performing have matured since she relocated to Austin more than a year ago (as can be expected with exposure to new influences and experience). On the bass-funky Carry On, she urges an ex-lover to look her in the eyes and say what he has to say, because she believes in all his lies. On Pour Me, she invites a man to pour her a drink, saying, Its all right because it dont mean the same thing it used to.

The musical variety combinations of drums, lap steel, piano, organ, and a bit of banjo, with Beths identical twin Lyndah Garner on bass works well. Even the theremin that appears on a couple of tracks is subdued enough to add value rather than annoy.

Alwyn R. Coates directed a video of Garner singing the title song. The freebie is included with the CD.

If Garner really wants to be a diamond someday, Addictions applies some of the needed heat and pressure to that chunk of coal of an ambition.

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Ecco un disco di rock sano e ruspante. Beth Garner, awenente bionda di ventotto anni, texana (è cresiuta a Dallas, ma ora vive ad Austin), ha alle sue spalle già diversi anni di dura gavetta: un album di escordio, di cui si sono perse le trace (pubblicato nel 2001) ed una quantità notevole di concerti, da sola o come supporto di musicisti come Jimmie Vaughan o la band di Danny Federici, per citarne un paio.

Non Lasciatevi fuorviare dallo sguardo che Beth lancia dalla copertina: Addictions è un album di rock chitarristico sina al midollo, dal sound denso e pieno di canzoni di buon valore (dieci su trdici scritte da Beth).

La Garner sa cosa vuol dire la vita on the road e la band alle sue spalle macina sound ruvido e corposo (John Heagle, chitarre Jeff Botta, batteria e Lyndah Garner, sorella gemella di Beth, al basso): il rusultato è un disco di sano rock, com non mi capitava di ascoltare da tempo. Non ho molti paragoni da fere: Beth può ricordare Lucinda Williams, nella voce, ma la bionda Lucinda è molto più orientata alla balata di lei.

Addictions si può mettere sullo stesso piano del disco di Tift Merritt dello scorso anno, ma farei un torto all Garner so volessi trovare un paragone a tutti I costi: questo è puro rock and roll, da suonare a volume alto.

Nienta di più, niente di meno. Too Many Cooks, sin dal potente riff iniziale, è una tipica road song, fluida e chitarristica, fornita di un ritornello che si memorizza al primo ascolto.
Perfetta per le radio che trasmettono rock (ma esistono ancora?, forse in America…).
La ruvida I Don’t Wanna è aparta dal banjo, ma l’arrangiamento è rock al cento per cento,. Blame it on Me, scritta da Bruce Robison, è una composizione piacevole, costruita in maniera egregia.

Ascoltate Get it Out: una chitarra dal suono decisamente classico, sezione ritmica possente, cantao grintoso di Beth, per finire con un assolo che sembra rubato a John Fogerty.

Anche la title track è vibrante, con sonorità quasi psichedeliche (alla 13th floor Elevators): puro rock and roll al femminile, altro che Sheryl Crow o Alanis Morrisette, La dura Don’t Live There ha un chiara impronta sudista: chitarre, sudore e grinta si fondono insieme che è un piacere; Carry On stempera un pò l’atmosfera; la tosta Pour Me ha un intro possente, che sambra cutturato a piene mani da un disco di Neil Young coi Crazy Horse.  Waiting For The Train è ingentilita dall’uso della fisarmonica, mentre High Anxiety è ancora teas a nervosa (come annuncia titolo).

L’album si chiude con la ritmata Last Straw, la lenta Believe Me, unica vera ballad del disco, ed una versione hard country, tutta chitarre e An Old Chunk of Coal.

Play it Loud, very Loud. close

In Texas steckt so viel musikalisches Potenzial, dass es dem normalen Musikkonsumenten aufgrund des berangebots schwer gemacht wird, sich die Rosinen herauszupicken. Nun taucht mal wieder eine Lady aus dem Schmelztiegel Austin auf, die mit erstaunlich viel Talent gesegnet ist und ihren Roots-Rock mit stark hitverdchtigem Massenappeal versieht. Jeder Song ein Treffer.

Beth Garner (Jahrgang 1978) tummelt sich immerhin schon seit 11 Jahren in der texanischen Musikszene, trat im Vorprogramm von Jimmy Vaughan auf und tourte mit E-STREET's Danny Federici. 2001 verffentlichte sie bereits ihr Debutalbum, welches in Deutschland aber sicher niemand wahrgenommen hat.

Ihr Zweitwerk "Addictions" wird jetzt vom britischen Armadillo Music-Label in Europa vertrieben und zeigt eine absolut ausgeschlafene Komponistin, Gitarristin und Sngerin Beth Garner, die mit ihrer Zwillingsschwester Lyndah am Bass und Jeff Botta am Schlagzeug das Herzstck einer gut abrockenden Band prsentiert.

Der oben bereits erwhnte Massenappeal darf hier als durchaus positiv bewertet werden. Garners Melodien vermitteln zwar diese gewisse Vertrautheit, die es einem leicht macht, sich relativ zgig mit ihren Songs zu identifizieren, doch verzetteln sie sich usserst selten im Dickicht tausendfach verwursteter Klischees. "Addictions" steht also mal wieder als Musterbeispiel fr ein Album der Marke 'Kenn-ich-zwar-schon-irgendwoher-aber-es-macht-mich-trotzdem-an'. Ein Silberling also der dem gewogenen Americana-Fan normalerweise verdammt gut gefallen sollte.

Beth Garner beruft sich, wie so viele ihrer Kolleginnen, auf den immensen Sound- und Songfundus (pop-)historischer Vergangenheit, und hkelt sich daraus ihr eigenes makelloses Jckchen. Tadelloser Gesang, der mal ein wenig an Sheryl Crow erinnert, aber auch recht hufig dem Gesangsstil einer Edie Brickell nahekommt, was in einem Track wie dem von Akkordeonflchen abgefederten Waiting for the train recht nachvollziehbar wird.

Die hufig eingestreuten rockigeren Nummern fallen aber auch mal in eine Gangart, die man von ihrer ebenfalls aufstrebenden Kollegin Gina Villalobos kennt.

Garners Vocals stehen also offenbar ganz klar auf der Habenseite, aber ihr versiertes und variantenreiches Gitarrenspiel ntigt einem dann doch noch etwas mehr Respekt ab. Die Lady hat ihr Instrument absolut im Griff und berrascht immer wieder mit geschmackvollen Soli, kernigen Akkorden und in der atmosprisch dichten Ballade Believe me gar mit jazzgefrbtem Fingerpicking.

Neben zehn Eigenkompositionen stammen zwei der drei auftauchenden Coverversionen von Billy Joe Shaver bzw. von Bruce Robison und zeugen zudem von Garners Treffsicherheit bei der Auswahl adquater Ergnzungen ihres eigenen Materials.

Wenn Beth Garner auf sich aufmerksam machen mchte, hat sie mit ihrer Mischung aus melodiser Popsensibilitt und hemdsrmelig rockender Heimatverbundenheit genau meinen Nerv getroffen. Auf ein Album mit dreizehn Titeln ohne jeglichen Ausfall trifft man auch nicht alle Tage.

Die Lady hat's wirklich raus und verdient eine breitere ffentlichkeit.Wer also noch eine musikalische Lcke zwischen seinen Lucinda Williams, Kathleen Edwards und Shawn Colvin-Alben vermutet, der sollte sie einfach mit Beth Garner auffllen.

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Beth Garner is yet another Texas roots-rock chick. On this, her second album, she has created a live band sound that suits not only her expressive voice, but also clothes the songs, ten of which are self-penned, in just the right musical arrangements. Stylistically she blends country, blues and rock into a distinctive sound that is very much her own. Though only in her late twenties, this vibrant young lady has been playing music around Texas for the last dozen years, and with the international release of ADDICTIONS (not to mention a short UK tour past December) is now taking her music around the world.

Both in her songs and the three covers, Beth takes on the role of spokesperson for the 20-something women standing at loves crossroads. She rounds up the usual suspects-inability to commit, rejection without bashing away and mixes those with positive upbeat love songs. She questions her mans intentions in I Dont Wanna, the title song has more of a poppier sound with a swirling arrangement that suits the lyrical stance, and Dont Live There Anymore is a leaving song with something of a positive outlook. Theres a great version of Bruce Robinsons Blame It On Me and Beth closes the album with Billy Joe Shavers Im Just An Old Chunk Of Coal. Throughout she is accompanied by her road band with twin sister Lyndah on bass, drummer Jeff Botta, guitarist John Heagle, keyboardist Chip Dolan and Charlie Richards on lap steel. They produce a very tight sound that perfectly enhances Beths soulful vocals
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Beth Garner brings to the roots music scene remarkable songs from the Texas Hill Country. She sings with a compelling deliverance of the songs she wrote for this album.  Her style is dynamic and honest without compromising her own sound.  The production is super and the musicians on this session are splendid. close