Dave Lionelli "Acid Folk" (Tiny Lion Records 2007)
Genre hopping nonsense from California
When one puts an album entitled "Acid Folk" on the stereo, it would seem a safe bet to assume a Devendra Banhart influence would be included in the cover price. It comes as a surprise to discover that Mr Lionelli does not appear to worship at the altar of Mr Banhart and his acolytes. Unfortunately, Lionelli's sound appears to have been influenced and informed by some of North America's most unpleasant sounds of the past thirty years or so.
Lionelli specialises in two main types of song - acoustic open chord strumfests (that mostly sound like the Chilli Peppers circa 'Breaking The Girl'), and cod funk workouts (that almost always sound like the sort of tosh that Fun Lovin Criminals would put their name to). He also dabbles in the odd post-grunge workout ("We've Come to Far to Ever Come Home") Unfortunately, Lionelli also possesses the kind of monotonous voice that makes most of his songs sound like an interminable dirge, with no discernible melody.
On a positive note, it is obvious that Lionelli can play a bit, and he can't be accused of being stuck in a one genre rut. However, it may come as no surprise that this reviewer found "Acid Folk" to be one of the most unpleasant listens of 2007.
