Vinyl of the Month

Artist: Gringo Star

Title: Arms Stretched Out/Black Night

Format: 7-inch

Label: Solutionist Records

Manufacturer: United Record Pressing in Nashville, TN

Recorded, engineered and mixed by Mike Wright at Sister City Studios in Atlanta, GA

Produced by Victor Javier | Mastered by Rodney Mills

Soluntionist Records have it going on. The label may be based in Pittsburgh, but its tastes are strictly Southern, centering around bands from our magazine’s own fair city of Atlanta, such as Noot D’Noot, Judi Chicago, Herb Harris and Jason Dean & the Options. One recent release by the vinyl-junkies is by the princes of Atlanta’s indie rock scene, Southeast Performer cover act Gringo Star.

With a lush sleeve designed by long-time collaborator Rachel Borchers (who had the band’s former selves A Fir-Ju Well play some of her exhibitions), the packaging stirs the imagination with brightly colored images of birds, horses, monkeys and girls’ faces. The art prepares the listener for the carnival atmosphere that lies inside, complete with a pinch of 1960s psychedelia.

The 7-inch record is a gorgeous kelly green, ready to spring up with the vegetation from the ground. The tunes match the deep jewel tones of the sleeve and vinyl. “Arms Stretched Out” plods along in a loose, gypsy style, with a lazy accordion leading the way. Singer Pete DeLorenzo melds a backwoods lilt with city sharpness, sounding at once both sweet and sad. A guitar solo in the middle belies the band’s country influence, echoing a slide guitar worthy of a Willie Nelson song.

The 7-inch’s B-side “Black Night” is a heckuva lot more upbeat, a prime example of the eclectic Southern rocking tunes that Gringo Star has audiences dancing about to. With a plink-plonky piano whirling around in the background like a fairground ride, the tune transports the listener to his own field of nostalgia. The surfer guitars and girl-group-esque (though sung by the all-male band) “ooh” backup vocals only help cement the thoughts of times past.

These two very different songs show just how much Gringo Star is growing and continues to grow. “Arms Stretched Out” and “Black Night” give the listener a glance into the world of the band.

www.myspace.com/thegringostars

-Leila Regan-Porter