Matt Mays and El Torpedo Self-Titled. Release Date : March 29, 2005. Label: Warner. Rating: Andy doesn't dig rating stuff. Interesting note - the debut album from Matt Mays was also self-titled... but it was only Matt Mays. Now it's Matt Mays and El Torpedo. The whole package, thank you very much. A group of guys who fit like a puzzle and give you the feeling they will never ever ever have a drop of bad blood between them. It feels that right. Any time I review Matt Mays and El Torpedo, whether on Cord, or just telling someone else to go see them quick before it's too late (whatever that means), I bring up this one song. The captivating nature, the way they all drop their instruments and clap at the same time. Powerful. I'd seen them play the song live as far back as I can recall having seen them (in truth, not that long...) and it was always a favourite. And finally I learned the lengthy name of the song, subsequently forgot it, and just began referring to it as 'September'. Well now I have the whole thing, and I can tell you the song is..."What Are We Gonna Do Come The Month Of September".... that's an almost emo-style mouthful. And I can also tell you, I'm very happy to hear how it was recorded. Not at first though. I listened to it for the first time at my friend's place. She's got a five-speaker surround system, and I sat right in the middle of the living room and waited for it. But it sounded like a reeeeally old warped record playing two rooms away, weak and flat, with only a hint of the character I know it has. And then I realized that only one of her speakers was actually working. So once that was fixed... ahhh. I don't know if I have ever heard such a simply, unintentionally, purely sexy-sounding tune in my life. It's not unabashedly trying to be saucy. It's not some slick, modern, hipster, sleazy SexDrugs&RocknRoll tune, and the guys themselves, while yes, they can party, they've been known to have a few drinks, they can rock out with the rest of them... they aren't really what I would term *rock stars.* They're too small-town-blooded east coast for that. Put them in a cabin with a flannel blanket, they're all over it. But this song is just hot. It's the snarly, over-used-voice, raunchy, bluesiness that it has about it. It just seemed to happen that way, not forced, no way. The rest of the album is far more highway-drivin' country. This one is solid backalley blues. So incredible. So incredible. Of course the fact that I'm talking about this one song for a giant paragraph does not mean that the rest of the album is a throwaway. Far far far from it. Here's what you do. You go find yourself somewhere comfortable to lie down. Make sure it's somewhere you're super happy to be, whether that's your dark basement, your lover's arms, your bed, a grassy field, or if you want to stick with the album's recurring theme, a beach. Plunk yourself down there. Take this album, chew it up, swallow it, and let it nourish you. Just stare up at the sky/ceiling/whatever, or close your eyes, and relax. All of its nuances, vitamins, minerals, four major food groups, let it all sink in, strengthen you, refresh revive and rejuvenate you. Give it the full 40-whatever minutes to do this. Repeat if necessary, and it probably will be. It's a summer vacation album... coming out in March, but it just feels like that... carefree, do nothing days. Road trips, warm weather, oceans, journeys. Just so much relaxation and time to think, or not think. To hang out and make life experiences. Maybe it came out in March to give it time to get people to catch on before summer actually rolled around. There's a couple of unusual standout tracks, like the chunky, roaring "Move Your Mind," and the heavily-rocking "Time Of Your Life." And indeed, the rest plods along like so many sun-baked dirt roads full of dusty, rattling old Chargers and decorated with the flattened bodies of so many small lizards. Pleasant, I know. But next time you're up for getting some kicks (you know how it goes), you're going to want to bring this one along. Who knows, it might keep you from getting shot by some crazed southern maniac who doesn't like the way you look at his cactus. Music unites us all. That church organ sound is found throughout the disc, the harmonies are lovely, and there's guest female vocals notably from fellow purely-Canadian Kathleen Edwards, who harbours the exact female version of Matt Mays' raspy, twangy voice. Finally, the last tune, "Wicked Come Winter," not only has a dangerous-sounding title, but it shows us a bunch of drums that are completely outstanding. Just a slowwwww bam-bam-bam-bam. Drawn out, maple-syrup-tapping dammit. It's heavy-hitting despite the slow tempo. And that's how this whole thing goes - slow lazy hot summertimes. I can't wait. Song of choice : "What Are We Gonna Do Come The Month Of September?" takes the cake for longevity, but the more I listen to it, the more I'm into "Move Your Mind" as well. There's not a stinker in sight on this puppy though! -Andy Scheffler Elsewhere Matt Mays and El Torpedo website Published : April, 2005.