Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde (Fat Possum)

Becoming “mid-fi” suits Smith Westerns well. While their first album was mired in Reatards-sounding production (complete with fuzzy distorted guitars), Dye It Blonde veers to a 70’s feel. The album kickstarts with the excellent single, “Weekend”, a song that exemplifies the quantum leap they have made, not just in production, but songwriting to boot. The Beatles influences are apparent especially on “Imagine Pt. 3,” which makes me curious as to what Lennon might have done with a part two and George Harrison providing his slide guitar. “All Die Young,” could easily be a T.Rex or Mott The Hoople tune. Along with the Harrison slides, there are plenty of Marc Bolan or Mick Ronson bended notes. “End Of the Night,” is a full-on glam jam.

The overall tone of the album, as was their debut, is wistful and fun. Dye It Blonde comes across as the album the band had tried to make had they been able to afford to. The glittery mix by Chris Coady helps take the band out of the garage and make the record a more complete vision. Not to say that this is Ziggy Stardust, there is no grand concept. These Chicago youngsters just made a sophomore album that is an extremely enjoyable listen without any time to tune out. Is it original? Maybe not, but what is. Each song held my attention and, though it sounds like 40 years ago, I can hardly downgrade the album because of that. If anything, we secretly would like to be transported back to that time. Dye It Blonde is, ultimately, a great album that sounds perfectly at home on my turntable.