The Burden Brothers - Self Titled Review

Posted by Bob Conklin on 08.27.2002

The Toadies return...sort of.

The Burden Brothers are one of modern rock's best-kept secrets. Though they are relatively unknown, the roots of the band go back nearly ten years. Rewind to 1994. Interscope records released Rubberneck, the debut album from Texas buzz band The Toadies. The album received no initial exposure, and was quickly written off. However, while the album sat on record store shelves collecting dust, The Toadies were out working their asses off, opening for other established and up and coming modern rock acts like The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bush, and Butthole Surfers.

The hard work paid off. In 1995, a year after its release, The Toadies surprised everyone when their song Possum Kingdom climbed the modern rock charts. The album eventually went platinum, and the Toadies became one of the most respected rock bands on the road. The group spent the next couple of years touring, then went back to the studio to work on the followup to Rubberneck. After months of setbacks in the studio, and constant roadblocks from Interscope, the Toadies finished Hell Below/Stars Above. Interscope then sat on the album for two years before finally releasing it in the spring of 2001.

Hell Below/Stars Above was a stronger album than Rubberneck in nearly every way. If you didn't hear about the release, you're not alone. Interscope promoted it even less aggressively than they promoted Rubberneck. Unfortunately, this time it was too much for the band to handle. They set out on an unsuccessful tour during which bassist Lisa Umbarger left the band. Shortly thereafter, frontman Todd Lewis disbanded the Toadies.

Rising from the still smoldering ashes of the Toadies, Lewis wasted no time putting together a new project called the Burden Brothers. The concept: get together with some friends, drink some beers, make some music, then release the songs as soon as they're written. Now free of the shackles of Interscope Records, Lewis and company plan on releasing a new EP every month, something that a major record label would never attempt.

The Band's current self-titled EP is their second release, and proof that Lewis intends to release his new music with machine gun rapidness. (Keep in mind; the Toadies haven't even been apart for a year.) The five-track EP covers a lot of ground in just under eighteen minutes. From the instant the CD starts it has little in common with the Toadies, though the frontman is unmistakably Todd Lewis. His unique vocal style and guitar tones haven't changed a bit. His rhythm section however, is drastically different.

Here's what you don't get: bizarre time signatures. One of the trademarks of the Toadies was their constant use of odd time. Although it was one of the high points of the band, and what made them stick out from other more stale rock acts, Lewis has opted for a more straightforward approach with Burden Brothers. Here, he shows that he can write good music in 4/4 time that sounds just as unique as his compositions in 13/16, or whatever time signature he was playing in.

Here's what you do get: experimentation. With a new band, Todd Lewis is free of preconceived notions of what he should sound like. With that aside, he can cover much greater musical territory, one example being the country-influenced Can't Let Go. The music and lyrics are almost satirical in their stereotypical portrayal of the country genre. Of course, the vocal delivery and guitar tone of Todd Lewis are anything but country, and the track rocks a void that hasn't been filled since George Thorogood was big.

Do For Me is the most Toadies sounding track on the EP. If it weren't for the ubber-heavy rhythm section of Taz Bentley (formerly of Reverend Horton Heat) on drums, and Mike Daane on bass, it might be mistaken as such. In fact, the heavier rhythm section combined with the straight time signature makes this an easy release to bob your head to. Dirty Sanchez is the best example of this. The song is built around a throbbing offbeat pulse. It's the same concept that AC/DC has exploited for three decades. It's simple, but it's heavy.

The last two tracks of the release are studio outtakes. Normally, seeing two outtakes on a five track record would piss me off. However, these outtakes (one of a jam/studio conversation, and the other an earlier version of Dirty Sanchez) give an intimate look into the creative process of a band that is still finding its style. The conversation that follows the collapse of the jam track indicates that these guys are having a lot of fun. That's not a feeling that you got from listening to the Toadies. It's a light mood that will stick with you long after you've listened to the CD. In fact, for a CD this heavy, it has an incredibly light mood.

Though very strong, this release isn't without its faults. Being only five tracks long, the disc leaves a one-helping feeling in your stomach when you ordered all you can eat. Of course you want more. The outtakes don't help the cause much either. However, the music is solid, and that's what matters the most. This is one release of beautiful noise that can be enjoyed by Toadies fans and non-Toadies fans alike. It will be interesting to see how The Burden Brothers develop over time.