aaamusic | On 17, Apr 2011

Originally born as a duo, The Retrospective Soundtrack Players is a six-piece from Hampshire that promises to bring the British indie-folk scene to a new level.

There were high expectations from this album after the unexpected success of b-side ‘Real Cool Hand’, still present in the album. Kyle Evan & Co. produced 13 pieces of fantastic folk. If you expect to listen a sound that merely follows the hype of Mumford & Sons or the Villagers, well, you will be disappointed.

Whereas some banjo riffs could sound, well, a bit ‘mumford-ish’, overall we’re closer to the alternative country of Uncle Tupelo, Will Oldham, and most of all Ryan Adams and Bright Eyes.

The hyper-prolific songwriters respectively from Jacksonville  and Omaha are more than only an inspiration here. Not only harmonic structures, but also the splendid voice of Kyle borrows from Adams and Oberst.

Though, the real protagonist of the album is Paul Newman, and Rosenberg’s movie of 1967, that gives its name to this promising LP. At the page http://retrospectivesoundtrackplayers.blogspot.com/p/cool-hand-luke-album-guide.html you will be amazed to see analogies between the album and the movie.

‘Cool Hand Luke’ is out through Xtra Mile Recordings.

Author: Lorenzo Coretti