John Wayne first appeared on Nathan Xander’s debut album just over a year ago. Soon after the initial release he started playing with his backing band Witchouse. While this partnership is hardly as redefining as Neil Young discovering Crazy Horse following his lushly orchestrated debut album, it has influenced Xander enough to give the band an unselfish equal billing and re-record his songs to “perfect them”.
Witchouse have undeniably left their fingerprints all over Xander’s work. Before the focal point of Xander’s songs was his drunken Ryan Adams style delivery, in this new recording of John Wayne however, it’s over a minute before his voice enters. Instead the band build restrained bar-room atmospherics anchored by some impressively moody drumming.
The song is steeped in the tradition of America. Lyrics such as “I’ll name a new horse and steal a ribbon for her main” would crumble in many performances but the execution is so authentic (featuring subtle touches of lap steel and vibraphone) that you get swept away in the filthy mood of it. Xander possesses that skilful trick of making every word he utters appear full of meaning. When he pines for his lover who “snuck south of the border”, the song transcends ideas of geography or time and simply evokes heartbreaking loneliness.
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Although John Wayne never quite reaches the exceptional heights of Ryan Adams and The Cardinals’ instinctive interplay (although their desolate Cold Roses album is a useful reference point), there’s more than enough quality to imply that a full scale effort from Nathan Xander and Witchouse would be a fantastic proposition.
Deep Elm Records online
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