Fox North Coalition

A world weary minstrel bemoans the state of the world and that no-man's land in which he finds himself. A plaintive, echoing harmonica answers his laments as tumbleweed blows across the dustbowl of his psyche and snags in the windmills of his mind. Welcome to 'Pleading For Sympathy', the opening salvo from the strangely-titled, 'A Block For The Wigs', debut platter from York-based Fox North Coalition.

The aural equivalent of The Grapes Of Wrath, this is sepia-tinged and redolent of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan and the Great Depression. We're a little surprised, actually, that it doesn't come with a free collectors' pack of food stamps...

With a touch of the late, truly great, Hank Williams and even the shade of the arguably greater John Lee Hooker, invoked in the shuffled, back-beat arrangements favoured by our trio, this is music drenched with pathos, poignancy and a wistfulness that no men under the age of forty have any business feeling.

Stand-out track, as far as we at Soundsphere Towers are concerned, is track two, 'The Heist', lifted to impressive, maybe even great, heights, by a superb female guest vocalist (Carissa Broadwater). But let's consider the chaps, for a moment; vocals are the responsibility of Tim Fox, who also doubles as a mean exponent of country-blues harmonica. Steve Earl (cool) and hints of David Gray (sorry, Tim) emerge as his concise and off-beat lyrical tales unfold. The North segment of the Coalition is taken care of by Vin North whose stomping, yet restrained, occasionally barre-chord, strums are the element probably most responsible for the earlier John Lee Hooker comparisons. The final 33.3 per cent of the triumvirate, and we use the word deliberately, given that the Fox North Coalition was also the name of the UK administration that governed in 1783, is filled by drummer, Steve Bradley. The song's sparse instrumentation add considerably to the Depression-era atmosphere of slim pickings. 'The Heist' is no flash in the pan, either; 'Vampire', while allegorical, will still have you clearing those pesky blood-sucking critters from the hay barn, quick sharp, while instrumental, 'Desert Blues', is the perfect soundtrack to some serious Sunday-afternoon-rocking-chair-on-the-porch action.

Less, for once, really is more. And while the tracks' similarity to each other is apparent, this continuity actually works in the album's favour; there is a pervasive and strangely alluring atmosphere of melancholy, and a bleak satisfaction is definitely to be had listening to the album in one sitting. Chuck in two, well-chosen covers, Steve Earl's 'CCKMP' and Jim White's 'A Perfect Day To Chase Tornadoes' and you'll get the message. Mood music, then, most certainly and very well done at that.

Here's a winner, from a trio with great potential and If you've ever pictured yourself in denim dungarees, a straw hat on the bonce, desultorily trundling along on a donkey and cart, with a ragamuffin band of malnourished and pasty-faced waifs in tow, then this is the album for you. For the rest of us, well, pass the moonshine, Grandpaw, and let's go round again. It's sure worth the trip.

You know, and I guess this shouldn’t be the case since British people popularized Blues-Rock, but I really didn’t expect to come across a Blues-Folk album from some dudes in York, UK. But, I did.

Fox North Coalition’s A Block For The Wigs is exactly that, but it’s more. It’s incredibly haunting and tortured music. It’s passionate and feels like the burn of whiskey. It’s fucking brilliant, is what it is! It’s like Ryan Adams x Dallas Green x Dustin Kensrue with a little Bob Dylan for garnish.

The heart and soul of this music is big and sincere, respectively, right down to the core of its jingle-jangle grooviness.

All of the songs are wonderful, but it’s “A Perfect Day To Chase Tornados” that takes the cake. With all of the tornadic activity in the United States recently, and all of the major damage as a result of it, this song hits home in my heart both metaphorically and quite literally.

This is another album that you should buy immediately. Don’t even think. Just buy it.
and here is the band camp link
http://foxnorthcoalitionband.bandcamp.com/album/a-block-for-the-wigs
cheers
Tim Fox

Fox North Coalition have left behind the legacy of Hijak Oscar and moved on to develop their own style of harmonica driven blues that sounds unlike anything else of its genre out on the scene today. Tim Fox’s lyrics have taken on a darker and more dangerous edge that are complemented by Vin North’s distorted acoustic riffery. The trio is completed by Steve Bradley on drums and percussion, making a return to recording and performing after a long hiatus.

Like an unwilling phoenix from the ashes, Fox North Coalition have left behind the legacy of Hijak Oscar and moved on to develop their own style of harmonica driven blues that sounds unlike anything else of its genre out on the scene today. Tim Fox’s lyrics have taken on a darker and more dangerous edge that are complemented by Vin North’s distorted acoustic riffery. The trio is completed by Steve Bradley on drums and percussion, making a return to recording and performing after a long hiatus. FNC will be playing at The Waggon and Horses, Lawrence Street, York on Saturday 9th October.

The band are currently recording their self-produced debut album “A Block for the Wigs”, which boasts a number of new compositions, including the foot stomping blues-rockers ’Pleading For Sympathy’, ‘Melancholy Tree’ and ‘The Heist’ alongside darker and bleaker acoustic cuts like ‘An Eye for an Eye’. Some choice cover versions are thrown in for good measure. Steve Earle’s ‘CCKMP’ is given the full FNC treatment while Jim White’s beautiful song ‘A Perfect Day to Chase Tornadoes’ could have been written by the band themselves.

The band are currently recording their self-produced debut album “A Block for the Wigs”, which boasts a number of new compositions, including the foot stomping blues-rockers ’Pleading For Sympathy’, ‘Melancholy Tree’ and ‘The Heist’ alongside darker and bleaker acoustic cuts like ‘An Eye for an Eye’. Some choice cover versions are thrown in for good measure. Steve Earle’s ‘CCKMP’ is given the full FNC treatment while Jim White’s beautiful song ‘A Perfect Day to Chase Tornadoes’ could have been written by the band themselves.