Alpha Mule - Peripheral Vision (2017)

OFFICIAL: http://www.alphamulemusic.com/

BANDCAMP: https://alphamule.bandcamp.com/

Written by Laura Dodero, posted by blog admin

The debut from this Southern Cali, rural music duo Alpha Mule is an excellent lead-off album.  Featuring 10 main originals, a pair of bonus cuts and some pared down duo versions without additional instrumentation of the album’s main tracks, there’s a lot to digest here and it’s certainly well-worth the time and listening effort.  Joe Forkan (vocals/acoustic guitar) and Eric Stoner (banjo/vocals) is practically the band, though they bring in a few support musicians to help out on the majority of the album’s tracks. 

Start-up number, “Corpus Christi” pulls the lead on a taut, tense dark-folk attack that sees dirty n’ raw production wraparound a hearty banjo/guitar/upright bass workout with lyrics and delivery fit for a night under the black sky.  There’s something overcast going on here and it’s among the bleaker, weirder tracks on the album and an interesting choice for an opener.  It really makes you stand up and take notice thanks to its bleak, foreboding vibe.  This darkness dissipates on the immediately following “On the Moon” which culls a brighter country guitar twang and buoyant banjo swagger that ricochets over a particularly wild upright bass line that practically propels the vocals to some awesome melodic highs. 

The mood takes a dramatic sea change on the stalwart country n’ western swing of the title track and its inclusion of slide licks and steel guitars which really hammer home the atmosphere; the hurdy gurdy vocals and plucky traditional arrangements only further the sentiment, conjuring one of the record’s most powerful tunes.  “The Distance” follows the same standard making for a superb couplet, which “Pavlov” is happy to alter with its furious upright bass grooves and incendiary guitar/banjo trade-offs.  One can hear bits of Elvis and even Bill Haley on this old school rock n’ roll scorcher, and again they change up the mood on the pickin’ n’ pluckin’ country of “Mule in the Mine.”  As the record continues onward in its steadfast charge to the finish line moods swap and change with the drop of a dime; “Step Outside” being the most straight forward atmospheric ballad on the album, “The Ballad of Huell Howser” going for the country side-wind full-throttle, “Music of our Hearts” going the dark, mid-tempo country route and closer “Empire” capping things off with dreamy, drifting folk that’s completely pitch-black in its vibe and atmosphere.  Some worthy bonus tracks including duo versions of album favorites “Step Outside,” “Mule in the Mine” and “Corpus Christi” show just how well Forkan and Stoner lay it down with no outside help at their disposal.  These guys can play and they have chemistry to spare. 

Peripheral Vision is a modern classic of the genre with great songwriting and musicianship that makes each track an all-out winner.  As the grooves seep into your brain and the duo’s dual melodic vocals take over your mind, you’ll find yourself replaying each track several times before moving on.  This is a standout record with one excellent song after another, and it’s hard to believe that these guys are already THIS good on their debut…the sky’s the limit for Alpha Mule, that’s for dang sure.