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Gringo (album)

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Gringo
Studio album by
Released2009
Recorded2008 / 2009 at Waterloo Sound Recording in Kent, Ohio
GenreIndie rock, alternative rock, psychedelic rock
LabelHappy Jack Rock Records
ProducerTodd Tobias
Circus Devils chronology
Ataxia
(2008)
Gringo
(2009)
Mother skinny
(2010)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Under the Radar[1]
Allmusic[2]
The Fire Note[3]
Erasing Clouds[4]
Citizen Dick[5]
Luna Kafé[6]
The Agit Reader[7]
Salt Lake City Weekly[8]

Gringo is the seventh studio album released by the Ohio rock band Circus Devils in 2009. All songs on Gringo were written and performed by Robert Pollard, Todd Tobias, and Tim Tobias. The first all-acoustic album released by Circus Devils, Gringo is a song cycle in which each track recounts a moment in the life of a nameless drifter known only as "the Gringo." The moods on the album range widely between jubilant to melancholy to mean.[9]

Reaction

Musically the album is filled with creepy film-score interludes and art-rock grinders, but also pretty and strange acoustic balladry. Like every Circus Devils album, it feels haunted, but those ghosts do less screaming and more gentle creeping and following. And of course, nothing is as it seems. There’s a lot to savor and decipher throughout. With Gringo, you can get lulled into comfort, but then you’ll be stabbed in the face.
– Dave Heaton for Erasing Clouds [10]

The latest from Circus Devils once again proves that this vehicle has no rules, boundaries or expectations. This seventh release tells the story of Gringo in a simple, mostly acoustic form that still embraces the Circus Devils love for eclectic background noises but is their most straightforward set of accessible songs to date. You can call Gringo a statement, a step forward, a step backwards, or just the right step but the Circus Devils finalize the notion that trying to put a label on them remains impossible and that is what makes them worth seeking out!
– Christopher Anthony for The Fire Note[11]

Track listing

  1. Witness Hill
  2. Every Moment Flame On
  3. Ships From Prison to Prison
  4. Bad Baby Blue
  5. Easy Baby
  6. Before it Walks
  7. Monkey Head
  8. The Beast Falls Down
  9. Letters From a Witch
  10. Arizona Blacktop Company
  11. Hot Water Wine
  12. In Your Hour of Rescue
  13. Ants
  14. Stars On All Night
  15. The Gasoline Drinkers
  16. Yellow Cloud (inst.)

References

  1. ^ album review at UNDER THE RADAR magazine
  2. ^ album review at Allmusic by Mark Deming
  3. ^ album review at The Fire Note
  4. ^ album review at Erasing Clouds
  5. ^ album review at Citizen Dick music blog Archived 2009-04-04 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ album review at Luna Kafé e-zine
  7. ^ album review at The Agit Reader
  8. ^ album review at The Salt Lake City Weekly
  9. ^ "circusdevils.com (discography page)". Archived from the original on 2009-04-04. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
  10. ^ Erasing Clouds
  11. ^ The Fire Note music blog