[rating=3.00]
After a ten year hiatus The Blacks release this digital EP entitled In Sickness and Health. Well slap me silly and call me Suzy, would ya’ looky there…the first acoustic little ditty is aptly titled “Ten Years”. Those past ten seem to have been dark, but witty; “I’m In Love” gets the bar hopping and moves deftly into the guitar soloing, Wilco sounding “Can’t Explain”. The band as a whole sounds optimistic throughout this short effort, even the Texas plains balladry of “If It All Falls Through” is twisted towards looking onto the sunny side of life.
A relaxed mid-tempo alt-country vibe pervades everywhere but Gina Blacks bow playing bass adds a unique flair to the pretty straight forward numbers on the EP. The just fuzzed-up-enough guitar tone keeps the group from tumbling into Nashville Pop territory. While the lyrics do contain quite a bit of sarcasm it is the vocals (especially that female lead provided by Nora O’Conner) that are money in the bank for The Blacks.
