That Handsome Devil – S/T / 2006 Stardust / 7 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/thathandsomedevil / Reviewed 03 November 2006

This album may only be half an hour long, but That Handsome Devil is able to add enough to each track on this EP to make the experience into something that is quite fulfilling. The jazzy opening to “Standing Room In Heaven”, regardless of how old the track sounds, is something that is vibrant and can connect with anyone that is listening in. This is much of the same approach that That Handsome Devil does with “Yada Yada”, which is a track that relies heavily on a rockabilly style and an almost Mick Jagger type of vocals to achieve success during this track.

When the guitar opens up and starts shredding alongside That Handsome Devil’s vocals, one knows that the number of styles that That Handsome Devil can do is not limited in any way. The tracks are all long enough (without being too long) for radio play; hopefully in the next year, DJs across the world can find the fun and hard-hitting style of That Handsome Devil. The only thing that I could conceivably chalk up as a negative on this album is that there are so many different styles that That Handsome Devil attempts to use on this disc that individuals may not exactly know where That Handsome Devil comes from.

This means that a track like “Sleep It Off” sounds like a theme from a late seventies cop show, why it simultaneously tries to approach the sound of a Frank Zappa while still keeping the vocals of a young Mick Jagger. This problem is ameliorated by the fact that That Handsome Devil’s ability is so much higher than practically anyone else trying to imprint their name on music in this current era. Each of the songs are professional as hell, and one would not be too off base to assume that tracks on this EP could have had a prior life on the classic radio stations. There is usually a question of whether an artist can move from the EP to the full length CD, but the level of output on this EP makes this question largely irrelevant. The only thing that I would like to see with an LP is whether it will be as diverse as the output on this EP or if That Handsome Devil will try to go forward with a theme album. The half hour of the album’s runtime seems multiplied by a considerable factor, as That Handsome Devil’s composition will weather the ravages of time.

Top Track: Elephant Bones

Rating: 6.8/10

[JMcQ]