Jerusalem Hill Road – Inches From Sin (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

There are many ways to celebrate a milestone birthday. Everyone has their own idea of how to make the day memorable. But not many people release an album to mark the event, but that is exactly what Inches From Sin has done to mark Karen Holloway Brewer‘s special day, and Jerusalem Hill Road feels like a present for all of us.

With Robert Brewer completing the duo, Inches From Sin has long wandered an interesting path around the sonic map, making music that takes in everything from rock energy to hip-hop beats, R&B groove to pop contagion, soul licks to funky vibes. If that feels like too many ingredients for one band to juggle, this new album proves, if proof were still needed, that they are a dexterous pair of hands, well, two pairs, obviously.

Inspired by the landscapes and stories surrounding the titular Jerusalem Hill Road in New York’s Chemung Valley region, Inches From Sin delivers an album that wanders through plenty of different styles, often mixing and matching sounds, occasionally exploring one genre more fully, all the while remaining rooted in the sharp songwriting and honest storytelling that they are known for.

Kicking off with the trap beats and distant, squalling guitars, baseball imagery, and urban textures of “Curve Balls,” this opening salvo alone tells you a lot about the unique and exploratory nature of the music that the album offers, especially given that just two songs down the line, we find ourselves in the embrace of staccato-driven rock and roll riffs of “See Me.”

“As I Get Older” arrives as a blistering anthem powered by raw alternative rock energy yet shot through with classic rock flourishes, and no small amount of personal reflection and soul-searching. Similarly poignant is “For the People,” which stands as a heartfelt tribute to those on whose backs, and indeed back-breaking work, quietly hold communities big and small together. Mixing a gospel-rock warmth with seductive melodicism and driven by a sharp-edged, caustic riff worthy of Dr. Feelgood in their finest hour, for me, it is one of the album’s defining moments.

“Want Me” takes the ballad form to new heights through unusual and inventive sonic choices, while “Aligning With the Stars” closes the album by weaving reggae grooves and soulful licks into an infectious pop-rock framework.

The result of all of this boundary pushing and genre hopping is an album that constantly shifts shape yet is connected by a signature sound, or more, a signature outlook and attitude, one that could be no one other than Inches From Sin.

Eclectic is the word, but also is electric…not to mention others such as creative, clever, adventurous. The phrase avant-garde-ly accessible…if such a thing is possible…is also relevant here. What a great way to mark a birthday, though it seems Karen Holloway Brewer has broken with convention and given everyone else a cool present, rather than the other way around. And I didn’t even get her a card!