Baby Woodrose Stumbles Into My Life

Stumbling upon Baby Woodrose was probably the best thing to happen to me today.  I was checking in on my old friend from FV Music, and she happened to like a blog post from a music critic who was singing the praises of their song Dandelion.  At first play, I thought, “Here comes the usual 1960’s crystal clear guitar, backed up by that familiar Rheem Mark VII organ sound.”  But wait, that voice, it’s strong.  The lyrics, they are clever.  The call and response between the female and male vocalist had me guessing the whole time.  There was no predicting what would be said next.  The song was simple, but catchy.  It gave a nod to the 1960’s for sure, but it stood on its own two feet. Very cool to be sure.  I had to find more, as I was hooked.

First, I had to find out why would my friend like this band?  She’s more of an MC5, Stooges, Dead Moon kind of a gal.  With one quick trip to the Baby Woodrose Myspace page, I had my answer.  Play the song titled No Mas, and you have just that kind of sound. Still, they can’t be pegged just yet.  They switch with ease between the two styles mentioned above, and then go a bit further.  Yes, Caught in a Whirl keeps you on that “Free Love – 1960’s” mindset. It has the fuzziest, fuzz guitar intro and spacey vocals.  It’s also dynamic, jumping between soft sung verses that are free of studio effects, to a screaming, screeching chorus that sounds honest and real.

Still, this band has more under the hood.  Take the song Emily, with its harmonic vocal intro, acoustic guitar work, and haunting harmonica. Put all that together and it reminds of you of the soundtrack to a spaghetti western.  The heart of the song gives more than a nod to a genre of music that found its peak over 40 years ago.

Don’t pass this band off as a band without originality.  They certainly have a style deeply rooted in the past, but you just can’t deny that they don’t have their own unique way of presenting it to the masses.  At the very least, stick around and play the song Chemical Buzz.  Be ready for the double time “Stepping Stone” style riff.  It comes out of nowhere.

This song is just two minutes long, it’s missing a solo, but still it’s got a crunchy hook. Baby Woodrose made their first album in 2001, and are still pumping out pretty damn cool music. The first album was just a solo project, but I’m glad that Lorenzo Woodrose realized that he had created something worthwhile. The band is currently playing shows in Germany and Denmark. Will they ever come to the United States?  I hope so.