FRED EAGLESMITH
Album review: "Cha Cha Cha"

In the music video for "I Would," a song on Fred Eaglesmith's new album, "Cha Cha Cha," he dons a cowboy hat befitting an alt-country musician with a singer-songwriter bent. After all, the man's songs have been covered by such country powerhouses as Toby Keith and Miranda Lambert.

But the music that comes with the video, and the rest of the album for that matter, takes a step away from the country twang, bringing in elements of bossa nova, folk and straight rock-and-roll from the '50s.

The shift results in a solid batch of songs that feel like the work of a less eccentric, less gruff Tom Waits. Openers "Careless" and "Tricks" ride distinctly Latin rhythms and elongated electric guitar notes, creating haunting grooves for Eaglesmith's tales of cold, calculating lovers.

From there Eaglesmith hopscotches from bluesy balladry ("Gone Too Long") to Southern rock ("Dynamite and Whiskey") and all over the Americana spectrum in between with varying degrees of success.

"Cha Cha Cha" may not produce another song to be repurposed by one of country's megawatt names, but in some places the songwriting works just fine on its own.

- Brandon Weigel, Dec. 2010