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Stook: The
Soundtrack to My Minneapolis
Banged out by local twin cities musicians and led by Joshua “Stook” Stuckey, The Soundtrack To My Minneapolis digs deep into what love and loss are like up in the metropolitan area of Minnesota. The music is basic and straightforward, yet arranged in a refreshing manner, and the lyrics are humble and honest. It’s as if Stuckey has laid down a Minneapolis lifetime of heartbreak into ten well-crafted tunes that spark comparisons to Tom Petty, The Jayhawks and early Wilco. Imagine Petty singing on Wilco’s AM, and that alone should ignite your curiosity. This is Stook’s debut album, recorded in the basement of producer Caleb Garn’s house. The duo set out to create an Americana indie rock record that musically revitalizes stripped down acoustic rock and tackles the endless confusion of how to fall in love, or better yet, how to stay in it. Highlights from the album include the opening track, “When It All Comes Crashing Down,” “I Keep Fallin’ in Love,” “Deliverance from Your Eyes” and “Watchin’ You Fall.” “When It All Come Crashing Down” is a fast moving alt-country number that clues you in on what to expect from the rest of the album: cleverly placed backing vocals, solid guitar solos, tons of organs and a shaky voice that finds it note in the nick of time. “I Keep Fallin’ in Love” is a bluesy piano ballad that Stuckey says is an attempt to create his own Sam Cooke song. The end result is somewhere between a Cooke song and a Paul Westerberg tune, and that’s a good place to be. “Deliverance from Your Eyes” is the most intense rock track on the disc, with its chorus that climaxes with “Doesn’t anybody hear my cry, when I’m begging for deliverance from your eyes.” Finally, my favorite track, “Watchin’ You Fall,” has Stuckey reaching for high notes in the chorus similar to what John Lennon would do on some of his classic tracks, and even though the voice slips in and out of key, the honesty and commitment to what is being sung overshadows the imperfections. It’s imperfections that make things unique, and that’s really what makes this record work. The record hides behind nothing; all that participated sound like they gave it their all, and what is left is pure and genuine. It’s not studios, professional musicians, or ten thousand dollar mics that make records good; it’s about heart, and it’s about soul. Stook delivered on both; there is a real lesson to be learned from this album.
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