Mark Olson & Gary Louris
Ready For The Flood
Release Date: Jan 27, 2009
Genre(s): Rock, Alternative, Country
Record label: New West
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Album Review: Ready For The Flood by Mark Olson & Gary Louris
Great, Based on 4 Critics
Based on rating 8.3/10
Former Jayhawks bandmates put history behind them to make some new memoriesThese new memories—thank the Americana gods—are riddled with Louris and Olson’s past, but there are hints of even older musical moments. Ready for the Flood reveals traces of The Kinks, the Grateful Dead, Moby Grape, Buffalo Springfield and even Procol Harum (check the organ on “My Gospel Song For You”) lingering in the minds of the makers. That the ghost of Gram Parsons haunts some of the tunes is less surprising but more than welcome.
Based on rating B+
Although it’s produced by Black Crowes bro Chris Robinson, the first studio collaboration in 15 years from the former singer-songwriter team behind the classic Jayhawks lineup is a much more subdued, acoustic affair than the plugged-in alt-country of their former band. ?A little dust-kicking might have ?broken up Ready for the Flood‘s dour tone, but when these two twine their pretty voices around girl-in-trouble songs like “Turn Your Pretty Name Around” ?or “The Rose Society,” they can still make a stone weep. B+ Download This: Listen to the song ”Chamberlain, SD” at last.fm .
Based on rating 6/10
On the first album they've released together since they were partners in The Jayhawks in 1995, singer/songwriters Mark Olson and Gary Louris reconvene for a recording that's unlikely to disappoint fans of their old band. But while they mine a thoughtful country-folk vein that's not far removed from Jayhawks territory, Olson and Louris take a somewhat softer, more acoustic-based, balladic approach here than they did in the Jayhawks days, lending READY FOR THE FLOOD a warm, honeyed glow. .
Opinion: Mediocre
For Jayhawks die-hards, the simple fact that Mark Olson and Gary Louris are making music together again is nothing short of ecstatic. Ready for the Flood, their first studio collaboration in nearly 15 years, may generate a little less enthusiasm. The duo's harmonies remain sublime, but of the 15 new tunes they've composed, only a few regenerate the jovial Jayhawks buzz.
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