The North Mississippi Allstars’ second album, 51 Phantom, is slated to be released on Nov. 6. The sophomore effort is a follow-up to last year's highly acclaimed debut, Shake Hands with Shorty.
Shorty, which earned the Allstars a Grammy nomination and a W.C. Handy award for best new artist, brought the band national recognition with rave reviews from music critics and musicians alike.
Brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson along with bassist Chris Chew make up trio.
While all three contribute with the vocals, Luther is the main vocalist and guitarist and Cody plays drums.
51 Phantom has the Allstars performing nine original songs of the eleven tracks on the album. This is quite a change from Shorty, which was composed of all cover tunes.
"In Shorty we just took a simple hill-country song and we just wanted to rock out," Luther said in a phone interview. "This time, we wanted to rock out to our own songs."
The album gives the Allstars the chance to show off their writing chops, while still paying homage to their blues predecessors.
According to Luther, the title and first track 51 Phantom is a tribute to all the juke joints that legends Junior Kimbrough and R.L. Burnside have played.
Legendary producer Jim Dickinson, Luther and Cody's dad, supervised the record. Luther said that his dad preferred spontaneity rather than a sound that was too produced.
"A lot of the songs were done in one take," Luther said. "We didn't have to worry, though. We knew we were in good hands."
After listening to the album, it's difficult to argue with Luther. Although many of the tracks were recorded only once, the album has a more refined sound that displays the evolving musicianship of the band.
51 Phantom still provides Allstars' fans with plenty of their signature jam-happy tunes, along with a few gospel and slower-paced tracks.
The gospel tune "Ship" on the album was the first time the Allstars had ever played the song. It was recorded in one take.
The Allstars get down and dirty on tunes like "Snakes In My Bushes" and "Sugartown."
These are two examples of what Luther calls his "rediscovery of distortion." He also displays this sound in "Mud," the southern boy anthem on the album. These tracks provide a head-bobbing groove and jamming extended workouts that Allstars' fans know and love.
After many critics have called their music anything from punk to grassroots, these songs back up Luther's description of his band as "just a blues rock band."
To clarify, however, in their second album they prove they are not just "another" blues rock band.
The Allstars rendition of "Lord Have Mercy" is one of the best tracks on the album. The song was written by the late great blues man Junior Kimbrough. The Allstars add a generous helping of Hendrix-flavored guitar grooves. Then, they break it down into a southern rock all-out jam reminiscent of the early Allman Brothers.
There are a couple mellow tunes, "Storm" and "Leavin'." These melodic songs give you a chance to catch your breath while showing a more plaintive, subtle side of the band's talents.
Thrown in the mix are a few gospel songs. According to Luther, gospel music has always been a part of his life.
Chew's roots are also deeply imbedded in gospel music as he often times has to rush home from the road to attend church on Sunday.
"Freedom Highway" is the first time Chew has ever sung lead in the studio, a fact that Luther acted surprised to hear.
"I think it is (a first)," he said. "We'll have to do that more in the future."
One thing that is definitely in the Allstars' future is plenty of touring.
Next week, the band travels to London for a three-day stint. Luther said the audiences in England are very similar to the ones in the States.
"The British are real wild," he said. "We love it. We've made a lot of friends there. They've been great to us."
The Allstars will also be joining Oysterhead, an all- star band with members from Phish, The Police and Primus, for four shows at the end of this month.
The Allstars will be back in Memphis next month at the Young Avenue Deli. Luther calls the Deli "our home in Memphis."
The Allstars plan to continue what they are doing, which is tour a lot.
There's no doubt the Allstars are an exceptional jam band.
The energy they have live comes through in 51 Phantom.
This latest album proves that this trio of southern boys can do more than just "rock out with simple hill-country music."
They have put their own mark on Memphis based blues music with some outstanding new original songs.
51 Phantom is like a sweaty, rowdy Saturday night romp on Beale followed by Sunday morning services.
Sweet redemption.
