image courtesy of Kristian Montgomery and the Winterkill Band

EP Review of Kristian Montgomery and the Winterkill Band: Prophets of the Apocalypse

Kristian Montgomery is an Americana-tinged rock ‘n roll savant. Despite the high expectations in place every time I listen to a new Kristian Montgomery and the Winterkill Band recording, once again, Kristian does not disappoint. And you know, I don’t even worry about the possibility anymore.

The first single from this record, “Leaving Texas,” was released a several weeks in advance of the EP. It’s a friggin’ masterpiece. You know how sometimes you hear a new song but it sounds as if it’s a long-time favorite that’s already a big hit. That’s “Leaving Texas.” Big sound, jangly rolling guitar line, powerful vocals, monster hook, and singalong lyrics: “I’m just leaving Texas, and if I live I’ll see you at home.” If you typically think Americana music is too bland for you, you’ll hear a song like “Leaving Texas” and think to yourself, “Wow, maybe I do like Americana music.” Then you’ll listen to almost any other Americana artist, whose music just lies flaccidly on the record, and realize that, no, you do not in fact like Americana music, you just like the genre’s very best artists, like Kristian Montgomery and the Winterkill Band. Unprovoked attacks on Americana music aside, I have discovered that Kristian always has at least one “how is this not a mega-hit?” songs on each record, and “Leaving Texas” is that song on Prophets of the Apocalypse.

image courtesy of Kristian Montgomery and the Winterkill Band

So far, “Leaving Texas” has remained my favorite track on this EP, but another truism about KMWKB albums is that pretty much any song can creep up on you and be your favorite at a later date, sometimes a different one every day, so don’t sleep on the rest of the EP. As if it would let you.

The following song, “That Bitch Done Broke” is a dense, noisy, sidewinding swamp-rocker. Rather, “rockin’ swamp-blues boogie,” as I called this style in my review of KMWKB’s A Heaven for Heretics. “That Bitch Done Broke” is a heavy-sounding example of the core sound behind much of Kristian’s music. And it’s addictive.

“Rock That Doesn’t Roll” adds a lot of classic guitar-blues flair to that swampy sound, while slipping some rhythmic choppiness into the recipe. And is that cowbell!?! Whether it’s actual cowbell or a similar percussion instrument, that’s just cool af.

“Cold Day in Hell” opens as a bit of a squealing psychedelic rock song before settling into a powerful, classic rock-influenced, arena-worthy, straightforward blues rock number that’ll have the audience singing along with “cold, cold, cold day in hell.”

The EP closes with “Foolish Devil,” a steady, plodding, emotionally pleading number delivered in that cool, blues-rock-country, kinda swampy style Kristian performs so well. And guitar fans will like the long, bluesy, wailing solo shortly past the song’s midway point. A song that drips in coolness, “Foolish Devil” is the perfect way to end this sidewinding, fully engaging record.

You can find Prophets of the Apocalypse here at Spotify and here on Bandcamp.

image courtesy of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band

Album Review of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band: A Heaven for Heretics

How this album didn’t rake in a bucketload of local and regional music awards – or even some major nominations – I’ll never know. Granted, Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band release new albums so quickly it’s hard to keep up, but still, this is another gem from one of the most dependably consistent, best recording artists in New England. And Kristian and band are prolific artists, at that, constantly cranking out incredible new sounds.

Kristian’s musical style is bluesy roots rock with sneakily nuanced songwriting, hooks (both conventional and unconventional), a subtly country-rock flavor, and a punk rock attitude. If I had to categorize A Heaven for Heretics in just a few words, I’d call it rockin’ swamp-blues boogie. There’s this eerie, otherworldly production value that makes me picture a rock band on an outcropping of land in the middle of a bayou, with moss hanging creepily over the twisted limbs of the surrounding trees. And if you listen to this disc, don’t you dare tell me you can’t picture that image, too.

“I’ll Break Your Heart Again” opens the album with an off-kilter twang, with a heavy beat, a seemingly storytelling dancing guitar line, and well-placed pauses that raise the tension as the song embodies the emotion of slow-paced, inevitable frustration. It’s followed by “Come Carry Weight With Me,” a song with a slightly melancholy but mostly resigned rhythmic to-and-fro that’s nearly as hypnotic as its oft-repeated earworm guitar riff.

The mood picks up quickly with the energetic rockabilly beat of “Times Like These” that, before you know it, will result in an unavoidable fit of air drumming. “Here’s to the Men Who Have It All and Still Want More” is a swampy dirge with surprisingly subtle guitar elements that are almost progressive in nature, though they’re easy to miss if you’re not listening with headphones on. With or without that extra-cool detail, though, the song is deep and blue.

“Ain’t Got Nobody But Me” continues the album’s mood but with more playful vocal and guitar stylings and some deep, sometimes clever lyrics.

“The Year the Bottom Fell Out” is a rawly heartfelt, wailing, slow blues-rock number that’s delivered as a first-person autobiography, one of those songs in which the lyrics speak volumes yet still the sadly expressive guitar sings as impactfully as the voice.

“Family Owned” is a raucously hillbilly mid-tempo roots-rocker that’ll beat you into submission with the incessant momentum of its rhythmic beat. It’s followed by “Secret Watering Hole,” a mellower, jangly-rockin’ song that doubles down on that whole swampy blues sound.

“If I Live to See Virginia” opens with a bit of jazzy blues flavor, sporting a more playfully non-linear drumline, bluesy rock vocals, and buzzy guitar. It’s a cool, moderately different sound than the rest of the disc, though it’s still a cohesive part of the same musical collection. With some syncopation and experimentation, this song is a reminder of the breadth of musical talent Kristian and band have, a hint that their musical repertoire could expand significantly, if necessary, just to keep things interesting.

The disc closes with what’s recently been my favorite song on this disc, the energetic, blues-rockin’, playful “Peach.” No, it’s not a song about a fruit, and yeah, it’s a lot of fun!

Honestly, I am never disappointed by Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band. If Kristian and his band aren’t on your radar, you need new radar.

Since This Release

A Heaven for Heretics, which dropped in January 2022, isn’t the most recent album from Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band. The band’s new album is Lower County Outlaw. Watch for that album to be reviewed in the blog, too – probably by Blog contributor Eric Harabadian. But there’s no way the Geoff Wilbur’s Music Blog virtual, metaphorical writer’s room was going to skip forward to a Lower County Outlaw review before first voicing a “must-hear” declaration for A Heaven for Heretics.

Looking Ahead

I see no upcoming shows listed on the “Events” tab of the band’s Facebook page, but keep an eye out there for future live performances.

photo courtesy of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band

Album Review of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band: Prince of Poverty

The sound. It’s such a unique, original sound, yet comfortable and familiar. Or perhaps uncomfortably familiar. A uniquely specific blend of rockabilly, country-rock, and blues influences, on Prince of Poverty, Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band deliver energetic, fast-paced numbers, soulful, heartfelt ballads, and catchy mid-tempo songs in-between.

This album grabs the listener quickly, with the seething, growling, barely-concealed rage of “They’ll Remember My Name” making an instant impression. The churning power of the rhythm supports Kristian’s understated, edgy vocal snarl, with surreptitiously catchy lyrics driving the chorus, with some soaring guitar wails judiciously thrown in to maintain a somewhat frantic flavor to the soundbed. In the end, even if you don’t listen closely enough to hear the rest of the lyrics, you’ll unconsciously sing along to “They’ll remember my… they’ll remember my… they’ll remember my… they’ll remember my name.”

image courtesy of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band

Next up is another song that’ll wend its way into your musical memory bank, “Tired of Being Tired.” With a tempo and vocal delivery that perfectly conveys desperate exhaustion, it’s a well-written piece of bluesy, sway-along, hauntingly relatable Americana.

“Working Hands” picks up the energy with, well, energetic picking. Just that hint of hillbilly energy adds an off-kilter edge to this raucous knee-bouncing foot-stomper.

“A Warm Grave” takes the mood and tempo down a bit, dipped in pensive, thoughtful melancholy: “Some things can’t be replaced. We’re gon’ die someday. It will be a disgrace if all we leave behind is a warm grave.”

“Don’t Call Me Baby” has an old-school rock flavor, reminding me of, among other music comparisons, a more ragged, rough-and-tumble version of a Georgia Satellites tune. The song’s uptempo, energetic motor and especially hooky lyric that begins “She’s a bitter pill to swallow lately…“, combined with Kristian’s gravelly, urgently insistent vocal marks this as another of the album’s many memorably catchy tunes.

Slow, heartfelt thoughtfulness describes the mellow “Soul For Soul,” though some raw, gritty guitar riffs add hints of a stormy undercurrent.

photo courtesy of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band

“That Kind of Love” resumes the rattly, jangly, bluesy mid-tempo country-rock vibe with keenly insightful verses build around the chorus: “That kind of love can kill a man, they say. That kind of love can make a coward brave.”

“I’ll Find My Way Home” has a defiant independence that drives the song straight forward, with a fun recurring riff that adds plenty of texture while helping give the song its swagger.

Finally, Prince of Poverty closes with two energetic, memorable, hooky numbers that are likely to become quick favorites.

The first of those, “American Fire,” is a lament of America’s recent direction, highlighting some of the dangers and missteps of turning a blind eye in the name of patriotism. It’s a wicked catchy git-along song, too, so I’m guessing some people will find themselves singing along before they realize whether or not they agree with the sentiment.

And the album closes on yet another high note, a fun number with almost a John Cougar Mellencamp-does-the-Opry feeling to it, “Just Driving Around.” It end the collection with a good, warm feeling: “Some people get slowed down, stuck in these dead end towns, but I’ve got it figured out ’cause I met a girl who’s happy just driving around.” In the end, this might be the most country song on the disc, at least in its content, as it revels in the sentiment that the best things in life are the simplest. But it’s not corny; it’s simply a full, memorable little ditty that’s “gonna haunt your ass.”

In closing, as I said in the beginning, there’s something so familiar about the style of Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band. And yet, the precision of the songwriting, talent of the musicianship, and sincerity of the delivery insists this is something special. You’ll have some immediate favorites upon first listen, but that will evolve over multiple listens, as Prince of Poverty is a disc with staying power from a talented artist worth getting to know.

Looking Ahead

Prince of Poverty is the second “pandemic album” from Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band, a follow-up to The Gravel Church. And, in the spirit of “let no dust settle,” Kristian is working on a third. As a fan of really good music, I can only be excited by the prospect of his creative talent continuing to flow freely. To mix in a sports metaphor, all he does is score touchdowns.