Album Preview: Celebrate - Chet Vincent & The Big Bend
/Chet Vincent and the Big Bend have been around. And after four albums, they just keep getting better and better. Celebrate, out July 1 on Misra Records, demonstrates their best work yet. Showcasing remarkable lyricism and instrumentation, Celebrate could elevate Chet Vincent from local or even regional band to the national stage.
Vincent’s songwriting on Celebrate is some of the strongest of his career, with songs that clearly convey their point through clever, direct lyrics with remarkable thematic consistency. Somehow lines like, “That’s the way I feel when I’m with you,” don’t feel trite when accompanied by the rest of the lyrics in “What You Do For Me.” Vincent takes general, relatable lyrics and manages to create linguistic context that makes it seem like it isn’t the first time you’re hearing a lonely singer croon, “this isn’t the world for me.”
The guitar solos on “Who Am I to Deny It” and “One Night Only” are complex, perfectly-executed and demonstrate the tightness expected from a band on their fourth album. While those two tracks feature standout guitar work, they are in no way anomalous on the album. Each track features remarkable instrumentation – piano, organ, guitar, bass and drums. Vincent’s unique voice grounds the whole album.
The album features vast genre diversity, yet it keeps its coherence between songs. From the driving, bluesy guitar opening on "Fingertrap" to the undoubtable influences of psychedelia throughout to the familiar country rock influences present on their early releases, Chet Vincent and the Big Bend prove themselves to be adept at consistently blending influence. Celebrate features a wonderful ebb and flow between subdued, stripped down tracks and absolute rockers that doesn’t feel forced or unnatural.
Chet Vincent and the Big Bend might prove that practice makes perfect with Celebrate, and it certainly is pretty perfect. Catch them at their release show on Friday, July 1 at Allegheny Elks Lodge #339.
