Album Review: 'When The Devil's Loose' by A.A. Bondy

A.A.Bondy

www.myspace.com/aabondy

Indie-folk artist, A.A. Bondy, is not a household name. He will not be selling out stadiums or topping the Billboard charts anytime soon, but you will certainly like him if you listen to his music. If you already have Bondy’s first album, American Hearts, then you already love him. Now that I have heard Bondy’s latest album, I understand why that is.

A.A. Bondy’s sophomore album, When The Devil’s Loose, just became one of my new favorite albums. Released at the beginning of the month, I have listened to it for a around three weeks now. I kept listening for anything negative or imperfect that maybe I didn’t catch previously before I wrote about it. I refused to believe that albums this close to perfect exist anymore, as if it were something of the past. It’s like my dad says to me, “There’s music and then there’s music”. A.A. Bondy makes music.

At the beginning of When The Devil’s Loose, the acoustic guitar intro to “Mightiest of Guns” sound like musical rain drops. Not much else joins the guitar as Bondy begins to sing. His voice is that of a hip, indie rock band lead singer but with the Dlyan-esque warmth that great folk singers possess. He has that old school warmth that too many popular artists lack.

The title track, “When The Devil’s Loose” is my personal favorite on the album. It is a fantastic blues song disguised as indie-folk. Accompanied by a violin and floating guitar notes, it is difficult not to just lose yourself and not focus on whatever you were doing before the song started. Your mind just drifts.

For those who prefer more country or Americana sounds, “The Mercy Wheel” takes a page out of the classic Americana handbook without any twang or indie pretentiousness. There’s a beautiful piano accompaniment to Bondy’s somber and melancholy vocals. It saddens me to listen to it not just because of the lyrics themselves but it is the second to last song on an album you don’t want to end. From beginning to end, When The Devil’s Loose, is music at its absolute best.

Give a look and listen to A.A. Bondy on this great video I came across of Bondy performing "Mightiest of Guns".


Backstage Sessions : AA Bondy - The Mightiest of Guns from Hard to Find a Friend on Vimeo.

Review originally published on Double Stereo here.

Catch A.A. Bondy on tour here in Austin when he performs at The Parish on November 13th. More info here on Do512.