Southeast Engine
The Red & The Black, Thursday, October 11
[buy from insound]

At the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, amongst the mobile homes, mail pouch barns, and satellite dishes lies Athens, Ohio. Athens shares some bonds with its more famous namesake down in Georgia - a university, a cool record store and extremely cheap rent. But this isn't the South, humid with lackadaisical charm and mint juleps. 175 miles south of Akron and 135 miles east of Dayton, caught somewhere between the notions of the mid-west and the heartland but with a soul that's closer to Austin, another city that's an oasis for modern creative folks, Athens, Ohio is an offbeat and curious little town. For Southeast Engine, it's home.

The band, with singer/guitarist Adam Remnant and drummer/percussionist Leo DeLuca at its core, have been kicking around Athens for years, making records and releasing them DIY or through friends, opening any decent show that comes through town (which lead to a friendship with the Wrens, which led them to us and us to them). The locals just call 'em The Engine. They're somehow at the heart of Athens. At the heart of Southeast Engine is the voice of Adam Remnant, a young, married middle school teacher who's just lost his job. But don't worry about Adam. He's written one of the best records in years.

... Of course, if the music were crap, you wouldn't be reading this on our stationary. It's not. It's just as fragile and divine, cautious and inspired as its subject matter. From the galloping charge of the album's opener "Taking the Fall" through moments tender, angry, playful and poignant, the music Southeast Engine conjures (engineered by the band's multi-instrumentalist, Josh Antonuccio) is the centerpiece of the record. The lyrical themes of the album are its treasure, but the miracle of A Wheel Within A Wheel is its blending of wholesome, pristine Americana with the artfulness of modern post-anthems. From the heart of the heart of the heartland, it's time for this band to place those wheels on an axel and travel.