The Doublecross “Keep Bleeding”

The Doublecross is actually the name under which Jon Greenwood releases his material. “Keep Bleeding” is his third release and one to feature songs with a darker lyrical content. It is also an album which apparently sees him extending the influences in his sound from beyond The Replacements and Lucero, to encompass the sound of bands like Teenage Fanclub and the Manics. Given we love all those bands we were definitely keen to hear what the album had to offer.

Jon certainly seems to be a man on a mission with opener, “One More Time”, a pretty straight forward rocker which reminds us of Soul Asylum, it’s a great blend of power and melody. Things get a little punkier and aggressive on “My Only Friends Are Chemicals”. It may be a bit grittier, but still retains, what we in our old age would call, a proper tune!

There is also a sense of blue collar rock sensibility on songs like “Fireworks and Butterflies” and “She Might Be The One”. These are songs that tap into the same classic American rock song writing style of bands like Lucero or Two Cow Garage. Indeed, a song like “The Stars That Never Shine”, has an even bigger commercial sound which could easily see them slipping in to the success enjoyed by The Gaslight Anthem.

One thing’s for sure, you’ll find it very difficult not to tap your foot and shake your head along to songs like “Bad Dreams” and “020814”. They’re the sort of songs that are just built for playing loudly in your car or at home with a cold beer in your hand at the end of a shitty day. Although, perhaps not with “People Hurt People Hurt”, which has a more down beat, melancholic feel to it. The album also ends with the, perhaps surprisingly, slow and poignant “The Lake”. A song which reminds you that even hard, beer drinking, country rock n rollers have a heart!

Part of the beauty of this album is in its simplicity. It’s not over complicated and certainly not deliberately ‘alternative’ or ‘inventive’. It is, however, an album full of great, rocking songs. It’s a style followed by some of our favourite bands over the last few years e.g. Lucero, Two Cow Garage and Northcote. Sadly, those bands have never really gained the success or exposure they deserve over here in the UK. They do, however, have a hard core following of devoted fans. The Double Cross will undoubtedly achieve that with this release, and with a bit of luck they could even go on to cross over to the wider success enjoyed by The Gaslight Anthem.