25 Smokin' Figurados
Divine Spirits, Holy Smoke
Reviewed by Margaret Moser, Fri., Nov. 7, 2008
25 Smokin' Figurados
Divine Spirits, Holy SmokeHoly Smoke is right! Where did these guys come from? Rising like phoenixes from Midwest bands you never heard of in Iowa, then going their own ways and reconvening here auspiciously years later, Timothy Abbott and Gregg Kirk have sheaves of songs between them. There's a touch of psych in "Blueberry Eyes," indie rock glory on "Wiggy," a hint of Soundgarden on "I Wash It Down," and whiffs of Timbuk 3 and the Gourds throughout. Kirk's Midas touch as a producer is golden on every track, clean and subtle when it needs to be on the wistful "Died Tonight" and applied as tough acoustic hide on the wicked "Way Around Me." With its cigar-smoke vocals and elastic melodies that pop into place, Divine Spirits gambles with a mixed-bag album blessed with bone dice of the right stuff.
