Welcome to Hotel Figueroa--Anytime of Year You Can Find It on his Website--Max Eider!

Wake Up! Slow Down!

You may not have realized it, but The Jazz Butcher, the deliriously witty band led by Pat Fish actually released a new album. I certainly just found out about it. Last of the Gentleman Adventurers.
I haven't heard it as you may have guessed, but if you rely on The Jazz Butchers past recordings, the odds are it is worthwhile. When you listen to a Jazz Butcher album its like picking up a great collection of short stories, some sad and touching, others laugh out loud hilarious, while some are wacky satiric send ups of whatever may have wound up in the cross hairs at the moment, be it President Reagan, Mark E Smith, Olof Palme, Betty Page, or even Peter Lorre.

But this is post is about his partner in crime, Max Eider, an extremely capable guitarist who has 4 solo albums to his credit. This is about his 2nd album, Hotel Figueroa, originally released in 2001.

And turning away from my recent indulgences in the punk-pop sub genre I've switched gears a bit. I present to you an entertaining excursion into a musical world of sophisticated, classy, jazzy pop songs, with a dollop of Velvet Underground balladry tossed into the mix.

If you like Roddy Frame's stripped down solo work or the Go-Betweens you would probably like this. It's an album that brings me back to those salad days of the 80's, when "Smooth Operator" by Sade ubiquitously lilted out unto the shopping plazas of most major European capitals.




If you are at least passingly familiar with The Jazz Butcher, you know how Max Eider can play. He can play in a variety of styles. Hotel Figueroa is a subdued sort of album, but with repeated plays, the rewards reveal themselves with greater clarity. Listen carefully to the guitar accompaniment and the riffs hit that sweet spot every time. He is own Glen Campbell session man in a way.

Max: Vocals, guitar and keyboards
Owen Jones: drums, percussion, accordian, vocals
Steve Valentine: Bass



And for all its fairly subdued manner, Eider tries a few things on this album. Other Kinds of Love is sort of a Samba-like pop, with what sounds like vibraphone. The Long Night sounds like a fragile lost Velvet Underground song, like a country-tinged "Candy Says". One of my favorites on the record. A guilty pleasure here is a cover of the old standard Lazy Bones, when it started my first thought was, he's not really doing this, but it turns out to have been a good idea after all.

Of course the opening track Hotel Figueroa, which is reminiscent of the aforementioned Forster-McLennan with some Chet Baker trumpet added for texture. Her Life is a quietly nuanced little gem as is the sunny harmonica embellished pop of All Your're Good For. Sweet End appears to be a Scandinavian pun of sorts.



Bottom line is, if you are asked to put something "romantic" on the stereo, take that copy of Big Black's Atomizer or Pink Floyd's Wall from your sweaty little hand, and give the talented Mr Eider  a try. I can also vouch that Eider's first solo effort, Best Kisser in the World is worth a listen also. There was a time when most of the records I owned were loud and fast, but at some point unbeknownst to me, I developed some other facets, I guess. And I'm not sure if there is a cure for this condition yet.

And please give the Jazz Butchers a try because if you are a fan of clever music injected with humor, you will want to hear everything they ever did.