MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: DEVIN CUDDY BAND - KITCHEN KNIFE

Cuddy and crew continue to go to the source for inspiration.  On the band's second release, the barrelhouse piano Cuddy is known for is still on display, but there's more old-school blues and country, more twangy picking from Nichol Robertson, just more of a band feel.  Much of that seems to be to serve the song as much as a broader group focus.

Forty Four is an original Cuddy number, as are all but one of the eleven cuts here, sounds very old, but is a smart and ultra-cool mix of a blues theme and country clucking.  He's going to get his .44 caliber to finish off some scumbag, a recognized blues motif, but check out Robertson's guitar licks, straight out of Bakersfield.  Just One Kiss is more on the jazz side, a bit of a Mose Allison feel, with a fine piano solo, but more of a Chicago guitar break.  Gospel, not surprisingly, has that very musical style, with more of that country pickin'.  The band (and co-producer Greg Keelor, apparently a family friend), have uncovered all the roots, but have crafted a hybrid rather than a pure breed.

The Devin Cuddy Band makes its way east soon.  They play Plan B in Moncton Aug. 22, and the next night in Georgetown, PEI, at the Cloggeroo Festival.