Hot Wax: Morning State’s You Know People, I Know People

The full version of this review appears in the pages of TRACER Magazine.

You Know People, I Know People is the first full-length album from Atlanta-based band Morning State, and I can say that the majority of it would translate very well to a live performance. On your stereo, though, the songs on this album are decidedly less thought provoking or life changing. That might be because Morning State, comprised of Russ Ledford (vocals and guitars), Dave Williams (guitars), Zach Sharenko (drums) and Aaron Stephenson (bass) are interested in rocking out with crowd-stirring guitar bravado and heavy drums and bass. This is the sort of high-energy rock that brings to mind beer bottles being smashed under the weight of a crowd having a good time.

“Sad Is When I’m Driving” kicks off the album with mid-tempo drums and guitar harmonies, followed by Ledford’s radio-friendly rock vocals, singing about having “no name for this feeling just the passing of time.” “Hurry, Hurry” reinforces the band’s focus on speedy, heavy-hitting guitar parts and drums that fill the beat and not much else. The drum parts are heavy on cymbal crashes and beefed up bass drumming. “Never So Strange” is probably the fan favorite, but not because it’s really exciting, but more because of its slower and friendlier alternative rock style. It does sound original, however, and I give anything credit for doing that in a post-modern world. The fourth track, “Grown Up (Atlanta)” is par for the course, but also the best in my opinion out of the heavy, take no prisoners rock and roll on You Know People, I Know People, with its guitar/bass/drum-filled sound and guitar-led vocal harmonies. It seems that the arrangements are tight, but also leave little room for imagination amidst the winding guitars. There is a more worthwhile interlude led by bass guitar in “Grown Up,” but even this creative portion of the song continues the repetitive nature the guitars, which are omnipresent on this album.

It’s difficult to review an album that is so different from music I listen to normally, but truthfully I gave this album several tries and listened carefully. I paid close attention to aspects of it such as the arrangements and length and breadth of original-sounding interludes. Taken as a whole, I would say that this album does what it aims to do, which is offer a full-bodied rock and roll experience, jam packed with two-part guitar strumming and loud, churning drums and bass. The vocals are really the backdrop on all of these songs, save for “Should I Know,” which oddly enough grabbed my attention the most, at least at the outset, although the arrangement wanders off into a less than creative instrumental finish. After a long and dramatic open of only organ or synth and Russ Ledford singing some of the best lyrics on the album – “…I came in this morning with calluses on my hands, I came in this morning and trees bloomed again…” Here his vocals convey plenty of emotion when paired with a very pretty organ riff. The rest of the song just pontificates the lyrics – with an easy beat, light on drums and a simple guitar part that rocks back and forth nicely. The remainder of the album gets back to the heavy, grandiose guitar soloing and metronome-esque drumming. I did find it especially troubling that the lyrics at times border on the inane – “We do yardwork every Saturday, and making love in the afternoon” from “Yardwork.”

Morning State’s strength seems to be rattling an audience with loud guitar licks and solos common to most live-centric rock bands. But I can imagine this band as a local fan favorite, and the show patrons likely enjoy the sort of pounding rock this band is so keen on producing. In that scenario, there is less of a need for very introspective lyrics, and I think most of the lyrics here are like parts of conversations taken out of context and thrown into the mix of a sound that drowns them out anyway.

Amanda Carnes