Rick Berlin With The Nickel & Dime Band let their high octane rock and roll music pour forth on their new Always On Insane CD. Berlin’s scratchy vocal, edgy backing players, and ebullient song structures are grand and diverse here. Berlin has a driving rock style that cannot not be compared to anybody else. Just when he reveals a similar color and tone to Iggy Pop or The Clash, you might start to hear a Frank Sinatra classiness in his presentation.
Opening track “(I’m A) Slut” is vintage Berlin. He croons his irreverent lyrics with his coolly scratchy timbre over a hefty, fulsome rock and roll sound. The horn section punctuates the nervous guitar riff with a slamming pound of heavy thuds coupled with bass explosions.
“No On Can Be Everything” finds Berlin oozing vocals over the hypnotic punk rock guitar riff and primitive rhythm section. This singer doesn’t imitate any of the world famous front men. He is simply himself, winging it by feeling and letting his frightened timbre do a lot of the heavy lifting. The horn section adds a touch of class, albeit in a driving rock and roll kind of way.
Fetching chorus vocals on “Hilary (Galaxy Girl) give the tune a likable oldies feel. A jaunty high-pitched guitar line pulls you deeper into this classic wanna be that probably could have grabbed hold of the airwaves back in an earlier time on radio. It’s a wanna be in the best possible way.
Berlin belts his amicable chorus on “Karaoke,” a bouncy tune with galloping guitars and rhythm section. On this just for kicks feel good song, Berlin describes the cheesy fun of karaoke with a warm tone that suggests he doesn’t hate it as much as other rockers. The incisive saxophone line from Dino Govoni pierces the nightclub atmospherics with chirpy coolness.
Tender ballad “I Love You In The Rain” moves at a graceful pace as dollops of bass guitar gently push it forward. Berlin sings in a sensitive, understated croon that brings lots of emotion to the fore. Dino Govoni’s Saxophone and Jesse Adams-Lukowsky’s lead guitar are clever and tasteful while in the forlorn backdrop Tom Appleman tinkles out a fanciful piano line. This would make a great movie scene song, played in the background while a couple play out their romantic yearnings.
“7 Foot Woman” is a comedic tale with Berlin finessing it in a mid-tempo gruffness. His voice is full of character and it is full of authentic emotion when he takes his time and lets it breathe. You almost cannot tell he’s telling a funny story because his voice is seriously steady.
“Kitchy” is a rock and roll stomp, a party song that could get everybody in the house dancing, or at least jumping up and down. Cooing harmonies and an authoritative stomp in the rhythm section and piano rolls make this another very likable tune here. The band takes off on a flavorful rock and roll break that beautifully sums up all the things we love about rock and roll music, energy, drive, and coolness.
Berlin lets his humor show again in the compressed groove number “Beer Belly.” This singer milks his scratchy vocal delivery for all its worth as he pokes light fun at being out of shape. The full sound that Berlin and his band make out of traditional rock and roll instruments brings to mind Lou Reed And The Velvet Underground. The whole thing moves forward like a big school bus full of melody, groove, and vocals.
“As Long As It Takes” finds Berlin in solo acoustic piano mode. He taps out an engaging rhythm while a lightly played guitar line lingers in the background. Berlin’s voice, again, shows a lot of character and emotional depth in down tempo mode. The sparse background lets him flex his vocal muscles, which he does to great effect, his brief graceful sustains full of deep feeling. To hear his unique scratchy plaintive timbre tap dance over the melody is a cool treat for the ears.
“I’m Jes’ Sayin’” is a mellow glide number with bashful guitars peaking out from behind bits of bumpy bass. Berlin rides the scales beautifully over his light support. His voices hits lovely and challenging peaks, and he keeps going forward after his voice arrives at that stratospheric level. An eloquent guitar phase erupts and gives another icy cool flavoring to this piece.
Berlin with the Nickel And Dime Band work up some bopping fun on “Summer Roof.” Focused on warm season rooftop fun, Berlin sings in a rapid party pace that sets the scene. Swinging saxophone and a paced rhythm section bump and bounce the fun along. This will definitely be a party favorite for sometime to come for fans of Berlin’s live shows.
Speaking of parties, Berlin follows up with another tale of good times on his “Party Comin’ Up The Stairs.” This one could be about the partiers on their way up to the roof. Edgier than “Summer Roof,” this party tune is horn-fueled, danceable drinking music. Berlin’s looser side shines when he’s crooning his way around horn band mania. You can actually picture the likely wild live in the studio recording at Jamaica Plain based Dimension Sound.
“Salut” plays like a slow song dance number. The easeful beat is easy to move the feet around while Berlin’s susurrant vocal glides over all, smooth as silk. Some electric piano makes for strong rhythmic underpinnings while Berlin coats this one with his own sweet scratchy charm.
Berlin closes out his disc with the upbeat backbeat number “All In This Together.” The band is burbling fun while Berlin oozes positive vibes in this one people one world theme. Trombonist Sam Dudley, who has been excellent throughout this disc, blows an odd take on Sly Stone’s “Every Day People.” In a strange way, Berlin has composed something that plays out like a mix of 1960s brotherhood, Up With People, and bar room rock and roll. Bravo.
Other fine players here are guitar and bass player Rob Manochio and drummer Al Radzikowski. Berlin has made another masterwork that will shine on in the lexicon of the legendary Boston music scene. There is a lot of history in the feel of this album. That history feels more local than national in tone, yet the disc feels as grand as many of the great albums of national rock history.
AWESOME article about an AWESOME album! Well done, Bill!