CD Review: The Riveras, "Some People Like Poetry"

The Riveras

Some People Like Poetry

(Self-released)

Grade: B-

Mesa jazz-rock band The Riveras is toned down and subtle on its full-length debut Some People Like Poetry.

Drummer Douglas Berry is clearly a jazz guy and singer Jody Lew's violin adds a splash of color to the background of what can only be described right now as rainy day music. Lew is a vocal tease. The lyrics are a bit challenging to decipher through her whispers but this vocal aesthetic is effective in its ability to captivate.

The band members work well together. They're polite. Yes, there's definitely something formal going on. The result is an album of bashful and excruciatingly chill songs. Particularly in the first four tracks, any build up to intensity is usually dropped. For that reason, "Indian" stands out as a turning point in the album. "Lift" has a sweet groove and punch to it. Lew's mournful violin in "Tied" could convince dust to up and lift away from the surface of an abandoned memory. "Blame" is a thunderously poppy change in mood from the otherwise somber album. The guitar riff on "Passages" is love at first listen.

The nine-song debut is consistently pretty. We just can't wait for the intensity knob to get bumped up to 11. That's when we'll start seeing sparks.