Deer Tick
Born On Flag Day
June 23rd, 2009
Partisan Records

by Justin Valmassoi 

John McCauley has a voice like a pterodactyl caught in a screen door. A thousand bottles of bourbon and a daily regimen of gravel gargling aren’t guaranteed to produce such a voice. The fact that this inhuman vociferation emanates from a lanky, grinning 23 year old is both infuriating and bizarre.

Somewhere in my record collection is a split McCauley did with a kid named Nat Baldwin when he was only 17or 18 years old. Several of the songs on that record would be polished up and re-recorded for Deer Tick’s debut LP, 2007’s War Elephant. That means that not only has he had that voice since his teens, he has also had the talent necessary to pen the several of the better songs on a very solid record. This makes me want to punch John McCauley in the face, because I am petty and jealous.

What can I say? I was raised wrong. Blame my momma.

Inclinations toward violence notwithstanding, I anticipate any scrap of music or hint of a live show from the Deer Tick camp because my jealousy does not in any way affect the fact that the kid writes fantastic tunes. Born On Flag Day is the first of two records they have slated for release in 2009, which makes my curmudgeonly, pursed lips almost sort of twitch toward a “smile.”

For the uninitiated, McCauley’s musical background appears to be constructed solely from old Willie Nelson records, Nashville classics, ‘90s grunge and ‘50s/’60s pop radio, which is good for everyone involved. If he had come up on emo or pop punk that voice would be the most grating thing on earth. War Elephant’s mixture of country twang and Nirvana, with its diversions into cabaret or organ pop, showcased McCauley’s range and influences for better or worse, the whole thing combining to make an impressive if uneven debut from a worthwhile new talent. Watching him lead his band through stomping renditions of ‘La Bamba’ and Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Nebraska’ were definitely high points of my concert going year thus far. At that concert the audience were introduced to the full band that now records and tours under the Deer Tick moniker, including brothers Dennis and Chris Ryan (drums and bass, respectively) and second guitarist Andy Tobiassen. It is this lineup that created Born On Flag Day, which will be released on June 23rd.

While the solidified lineup has been doing a fine job of keeping audiences grinning and stomping on the road, the studio effort shows certain chinks in the armor. Gone are McCauley’s left-field meanderings into grunge (‘Christ Jesus,’ ‘Not So Dense’) which were definite high points/standouts on War Elephant. Gone also is the Wurlitzer, and the juke-joint piano. Instead the full band creates a much more cohesive sound, and therein lies the problem. None of the songs on Born On Flag Day are bad. Not one. Almost none of them distinguish themselves either. Liz Isenberg’s vocal contributions to ‘Friday XIII’ certainly help, providing an airy and enjoyable contrast to McCauley’s … whatever it is he does. His voice thing. The rest of the album is a collection of nine perfectly acceptable midtempo country-tinged rock and roll songs. Daytrotter favorites ‘The Ghost’ and ‘Little White Lies’ are given some balls, fleshed out and filled in by the brothers Ryan and Tobiassen. ‘Smith Hill’ is a bit of a high point, certainly one of the better songs McCauley’s penned recently. And again, there are no bad songs on the record. Its fatal flaw is that there are no great, or at least immediately arresting songs either. For those who have never heard Deer Tick, this is probably a better record to start with. It’s certainly more accessible, the depth of sound created by the band softening the edges of McCauley’s banshee wail without diminishing its power, and thanks to the miracle of the world wide computer internet superhighway of information and the iTunes, all these perfectly good songs can be stuck in a playlist with all of War Elephant’s best jams, rendering my complaints moot. It’s called a “smart playlist.” Google it. (That’s some more “tech talk.”)

Deer Tick returns to Chicago July 15th at The Empty Bottle. That’s plenty of time to dust off your trucker cap, familiarize yourself with Born On Flag Day and thicken up that moustache. Regardless of your feelings on the album, you’re not going to catch a more rollicking live show any time soon.