Irish band's fifth album, a raw mix of country and primal rock n roll. These alt. country rockers let rip on the electric guitars with feedback and distortion, yet leaving room for banjo and hammond organ on more thoughtful moments. It rocks , it roll’s and it exists in a world all of its own. You’d get the impression that these guys don’t give a damn about trends, radio play or commercial success. Lyrically it takes you someplace else, another world, another time, and throughout, Les Keye and Chris Teusner hold down the beat. Since the mid 90’s Irish man Dowd has fronted The Racketeers as they brought their fiery brand of americana / rock n roll to audiences throughout Europe. In recent years Eamonn has also toured in a solo / acoustic capacity, blazing a trail through Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, the Baltics, USA and Canada. Produced by Les Keye, this new album is released on Berlin based label Cannary Row Records. http://theracketeers.com http://www.myspace.com/theracketeersireland http://www.downloadmusic.ie/eamonndowdandtheracketeers ********************************************************** Eamonn Dowd & the Racketeers “Mansions of Gold” (Cannary Row Records, 2009) The wild rover delivers another solid punch Dowd strikes me as the kind of musician for whom the music, the performing is everything,; he just plugs his guitar in and plays (my kind of musician). This record is louder and harsher than the last, as though he gained a taste for electricity and wants to feel its jolt as often as possible. ‘Stanton Street’ sounds like he’s playing in the rain in order to spark a short-circuit. Dowd also tours econo, just him and his acoustic guitar. ‘Autumn Laves’ eloquently states why that possibility should mean it is something that you should look out for. His voice isn’t the best, it is rough and ready, but it is heartfelt and artless, so that you are more than happy to hear it pushing the words out. When they add additional touches like banjo, organ and sax on ‘Sweet Angel’ it is not over-egging the omelette, just tickling the tastebuds with some musical herbs. His bread and butter is drink. ‘The Women Around Here’ or ‘Nobody Knows’ feature dame alcohol, the latter sounding a lot like the underrated Steve Westfield with its naked vocal and threatening guitars that eventually break out a sheet of noise with a prickle of banjo tagging along like Jiminy Cricket. Dowd seems like the kind of person you’d want to share a beer with and I’m pretty sure that this would sound all the better if I wasn’t stone cold sober. AMERICAN UK.... Date review added: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 Reviewer: David Cowling Reviewers Rating: Related web link: Protection *********************************************************** Van ons zult u volstrekt geen klachten horen want "Mansions of Gold" maakt dit deels goed. En dit al meteen met de opzwepende openingstrack, "The Women Around Here", tevens eerste single van deze plaat, maar het daaropvolgende "Doesn't Matter At All" vonden we iets minder. Neen, het volgende hoogtepunt is het briljante "45": rockende groove en zeer grote klasse alom. Na de lekkere countryrock van "Nine Bridges From Town", het zeer korte instrumentaaltje "Stanton Street" is er even tijd voor een prachtige ballade, "Autumn Leaves". Onze favorieten? jazeker het daaropvolgende, absoluut superieure "Sweet Angel" - waarin een aantal accenten aan het groepsgeluid zijn toegevoegd door middel van banjo, orgel en sax door een aantal gastmuzikanten - daar hebben we veel bewondering voor. "Mansions of Gold" is gelukkig weer een echte Eamonn Dowd & The Racketeers plaat. Een plaat die het beste van zijn voorgangers, Exit Hellsville (2005) en "Silver And Dust" (2006) lijkt te verenigen en een verrassend veelzijdig geluid laat horen waarin Dowd en zijn band doen waar ze inmiddels al geruime tijd goed in zijn, maar ook de nieuwe wegen niet worden geschuwd. De instrumentatie is weer wat rauwer en meer rockend als "Silver And Dust", maar klinkt ook opvallend opgewekt. Dowd's stem is zoals altijd sfeerbepalend, net als de prachtige verhalen die hij in zijn songs weet te vertellen. Luister naar "Mansions of Gold" en je begrijpt wat ik bedoel. ROOTSTIME ( Belgium)