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Album Details

• Artist: Richmond Fontaine
• Album: Post To Wire
• Label: El Cortez
• Year of Release: 2004
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: dscanland on 2005-02-02

Many moons ago I reviewed an album of a Portland based roots act called Richmond Fontaine. It was called Lost Son and I thought it was one of the best Americana type albums that I had heard since Uncle Tupelo or Son Volt. I forgot about them, unfortunately, but this past summer (2004) I spent a couple weeks in Tofino BC and the kind folks at the Long Beach Surf Shop lent me the latest two Richmond Fontaine albums, Winnemucca and Post To Wire. I listened to them over and over while I was there and really started thinking that now that Wilco is off on their pop tangent, Ryan Adams was going all emotional on us and Jay Farrar is just doing what he has been doing for the past 10 years, who does someone turn to for really good Americana/No Depression music? Well, I would recommend Richmond Fontaine at the drop of a hat. I think the key to this bands longevity is that they met through music in the first place. They all met through Will Vlautin, the bands frontman, and the first incarnation of the band was formed back in 1996. Post To Wire is RF's fifth album and I am amazed that a band this good has remained undiscovered by most. I think a lot of people were like me and just didn't pay attention after Lost Son, probably their most covered album. El Cortez records is a tiny label with hardly any marketing budget so you know a band like this is only really in it to play music for those who want to hear it. Post To Wire starts out with a fairly energetic song called "The Longer You Wait". It sets a high bar for the band to keep up to but with the broad range of the country styles here, they deliver quite easily. They move into a much mellow road song called "Barely Losing". I'm not even going to go into each and ever track on this awesome album because if you like bands like Whiskeytown, Uncle Tupelo, or Son Volt, and you are wondering where to turn to for this type of music, look no further than Portland's Richmond Fontaine. These guys know this genre well and are making killer albums that are completely under the radar. Post To Wire should be huge making the horse racing term that the title is taking from ring true. I love the "Postcards" that Will does spoken word on. Little segments telling short stories told from the perspective of a postcard.

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