Credits:

Cat Stevens

Description:

EXTERNAL COMBUSTION was produced in three weeks in the summer of 2021, with George Drakoulias as producer as on the previous album. Featuring guests such as Margo Price, the new country diva, Ian Hunter of Mott the Hoople, and Benmont Tench, an ally of the Heartbreakers, the album is a collection of songs ranging from boogie-style rock 'n' roll to country-soul ballads, folksy tastes to Howlin' Wolf-esque tunes. The album features a variety of styles, from boogie-style rock and roll to country-soul ballads, from folky tunes to Howlin' Wolf-esque shuffle beats that are irresistible, but consistently superb American rock. Mike comments on Dirty Knobs: "This band is just spontaneously combusting and creating tremendous energy.The longer we play together, the more intuitively the sound develops." The album's opening track, "Wicked Mind," which is available now, has a raw garage rock sound. The album's opening track, "Wicked Mind," has a raw garage-rock sound, but there's also "Brigitte Bardot," with its pleasant shuffle beat, the bluesy "Cheap Talk" (with Margo Price on backing vocals) over a smoky orchestration, and the country-tinged "Wicked Mind," with its strings and brass that speak of the band's frontier symphony image. The country-soul ballad "State Of Mind" (which features a duet with Margo Price), "Dirty Job" (with Ian Hunter on second verse vocals), and the mid-tempo dirty-rock sound of "Dirty Job" (with Benmont Tench on backing vocals), all of which are testament to the band's frontier symphony image. Benmont Tench's Jerry Lee Lewis-like piano on "Lightning Boogie," and the waltz beat of "Electric Gypsy," which evokes a peaceful afternoon, are among the finest rock songs on "EXTERNAL COMBUSTION. The album is packed with top-quality rock songs. (2/2)

Tracklisting:

1.Don't Be Shy
2.Dialogue 1 (I Go to Funerals)
3.On the Road To Find Out
4.I Wish, I Wish
5.Piano Concerto No. 1 in B Flat Minor
6.Dialogue 2 (How Many Suicides)
7.Marching Band/Dialogue 3 (Harold Meets Maude)
8.Miles from Nowhere
9.Tea for the Tillerman
10.I Think I See the Light
11.Dialogue 4 (Sunflower)
12.Where Do the Children Play?
13.If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out
14.The Blue Danube
15.Dialogue 5 (Somersaults)
16.If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out
17.Dialogue 6 (Harold Loves Maude)
18.Trouble
19.If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out (Ending)