Even in relatively clean-cut numbers like “Lovingkindness” and “Walked Along,” the strings sport a notable dirtiness in the new record Red Beets & Horseradish that speaks directly to the audience. It’s not that The Little Wretches want us to focus more on instrumental frills than lyricism here, but instead that the backdrop is made to be as imposing as anything on the frontend of the mix in this LP is. Red Beets & Horseradish is a record that will get your attention, and not in the same way a lot of other releases will this spring.
The groove comes to define the mood of “Old Lillian’s Story,” “Winter’s Grace,” and the rambling rocker “Old Hundredth,” and there’s rarely a moment here in which The Little Wretches aren’t afraid to use their rhythmic stamina to make a story more sensible to the listener. There’s really nothing they aren’t willing to experiment with if it means setting a scene up as tangibly as possible, and where a lot of their contemporaries wouldn’t have been as detailed, they’re willing to utilize intricacy all the more as a means of distinguishing their sound from that of the competition.
Americana’s influence can be found in just about every moment of Red Beets & Horseradish, but personally, I think “Tiger Pajamas,” “Palms & Crosses,” and the lush “Rise / Swanage” are the best demonstrations of the aesthetic forming a strong narrative in this LP. I will say that while there’s a noticeable alternative rock component to the structure of this music, it’s always coupled with a bucolic element that prevents anything here from sounding too polished or sparkling with production varnish, which is a lot different approach than most of the indie units taking on a hybrid project like this album have been employing.
Fans of folk-rock that sports a heady melodic center needn’t look further for an exciting time this May than the one offered in Red Beets & Horseradish, and while I usually go for a more condensed style of this genre, the provocative nature of this tracklist is just too intriguing for me to turn down. The Little Wretches have a uniquely edgy style of play that puts them ahead of their direct rivals in more departments than one, and this is exactly the kind of album that spotlights this edge in a manner almost any folk-rocker will be able to appreciate.
Heather Savage