Pete Molinari - Virtual Landslide (2008)

Hi, I am Bob Pete Dylan Patsy Molinari Guthrie II

ARTIST`````Pete Molinari
ALBUM`````Virtual Landslide
GENRE`````Blues, Folk
YEAR````````2008

What?
A really, really good album from a really, really good artist. Most of the critics are bullshiting around calling him the Most Awesome Thing Since The Beginning Of Time - but hey - they get paid for that. I find him to very refreshing and pure in form. His songs are dominated with a powerful voice (based on Bob Dylan). The most intriguing thing is how similar he can be to early Dylan but it's obvious he is not "stealing" - he is very much obsessed and strongly influenced by Patsy Cline, Bob Dylan, Billie Holliday and John Coltrane. The most natural thing is not to be shy and continue the story. One thing most of the critics missed to point out is the importance of Molinari's singing + arrangements of straightforward, classic, raw blues - it's so clean it sounds literally like a 60's vinyl record -and that's why it sounds so fresh when released in a confusing mash-up time like the 2000's are.

Here's some short info: Molinari’s voice takes a little getting used to, just like Dylan’s. But once you get over his nasally falsetto and take in the overall feel of the music, you’ll wonder how a young Maltese/Italian/Egyptian man from the U.K. can sound so much like an American folk singer from the 1960’s. The influences Molinari cites are from another time, ranging from Jack Kerouac to John Coltrane to Johnny Cash. And they all come through in his harmonica-laden acoustic tunes.

Review
From Boomkat

To say Pete Molinari is old school would be a great understatement. A Virtual Landslide is Molinari's second album, and was recorded at the all-analogue Toerag studios, famous for recording The White Stripes' Elephant LP among others, and you can certainly hear the vintage charm of the studio's pre-1960s equipment. From the classic boogie-woogie of 'I Came Out Of The Wilderness' to the jangling balladry of 'One Stolen Moment' the album sounds pretty darn delightful, but there's always a danger that the militantly retro production spills over into gimmickry, ultimately detracting from Molinari's writing. But with songs like 'There She Still Remains' on board, there's no such danger. The recording features some lyrical pedal steel playing from BJ Cole, and sounds a bit like something from Dylan's Nashville Skyline period, recalling a lonesome country blues that just doesn't get old. Highly recommended.


DOWNLOAD

My favourite track "It Came Out of The Wilderness" is included on a compilation V.A. I'm Gonna Burn Yourself (2010) so you might want to get that also:)