The Haymarket Squares new album ‘Light It Up’ is a blistering arsenal of Punkgrass musicians shredding at the top of their game!
After the music video I couldn’t wait to get to this full album review!
The record opens up with charming vocal harmonies of Marc Oxborrow, Mark Allred, and Mark Sunman in a Sunday service type of intro. In ‘Heaven’ the line that kicks in the verse will foreshadow the rest of this album quite nicely when the lead sings “Well there ain’t no heaven / Got to make one here”. This is just the beginning of the direct and jaunty style you’re going to experience with a heavy amount of Frank Turner anti-gospel zest. Great solos were had on violin and piano along with some musical motifs nodding to some spirituals you are sure to recognize.
‘Horrible inventions’ has a dizzying opening riff on mandolin that is at breakneck speed, before the accordion puffs its lungs and the rest of the ensemble rolls in. More poignant lyrics rush through the song like “Bordertowns becoming battle zones / catching money to be made from the victims of free trade”. At this point you should realize if you haven’t that there is going to be a delicious amount of irony, political disdain, and some wildly crafty songwriting pouring out of these talented cats.
‘Working Reward’ suggests from its waltz-y starting tempo that the band is going to cool it for this next track. That is until Marc says with a fast rhythm “It was already meager this working reward”. The band strikes along and combines some great weaving harmony lines between the guitar, banjo, and mandolin. This song also contained one of my favorite lyrics of the whole record which is “You’re worth more than they’ll ever pay you”. It is exciting to laugh, and be impressed but also ignited by the flurry of words that go along with each song. It would be hard to encapsulate the spectrum of all of the sharp prose, so make sure you listen well to catch everything. It’s delightful! And the mandolin, banjo, and violin have some ripping solos. Great work Rudy Cortese, Mark Sunman, and Jayson James.
‘Let’s Start A Riot’ walks in with Marc Oxborrow’s bass line, and steals the show in my opinion as one of the big song’s of this album. It’s quite catchy, highly relatable, and every word hangs in your ear. Even listening to it without the music video I can picture the raucous chaos in the piece. Loved that chromatic diving guitar and pretty much everything about this song. It’s a hit!
‘High Demand’ has a very unique wailing clarinet soloing in the intro which honestly makes me want to start bringing over my whiskey to accompany the rest of this review. Don’t use this song as a pick me up, but as a fight song towards the private prison system and more. That would probably work for many of these songs. Also you will probably dance, even if it’s in your chair. This song has some bold statements about everything from waging class wars to buying your freedom.
‘Jump The Border’ is brilliant because it has a Spanish taste that makes me want to salsa dance deep in the heart of Mexico. This is another song would definitely do great with any Arizona listener. By the end of this song you will start singing along. There is a great amount of harmony throughout this record with vocals, but the most clever use of it comes around a short tribute section to “God Bless America” during this musical caravan taking us past the lines in the sand.
‘King Me’ starts with “I’m a monarchist, and I’m here to say / I can solve the problems that we face today”. You can bet the speaker wants to bring the aristocracy back. The Haymarket Squares are clearly fixing to cover all the flaws in the human ruled systems, and this song keeps bringing the fire. I am really impressed with the quality of each musician on this record, and also the depth of each song’s lyrical muscle. That’s always a good thing to think halfway through any record.
‘No Such Agency’ is a cute song about the NSA. Just so everyone knows over the slide guitar that someone is always watching in the digital age. This song boasts a sweet bluegrass waltz, and almost feels like an unsettling ballad to spying.
‘Gritty City’ is about Phoenix, Arizona. Life in the desert isn’t always easy, but as a native born and raised in Phoenix you would likely feel the same about many of things mentioned in this track. I won’t give too much away, but I love the line, “It’s feeling nice and cool outside, it’s only 105”.
‘Part Of The Problem’ will make not feel alone when you’re feeling it’s hard to do all the things to change the problems that surround you on a grander level. I think this is another highly relatable song for many audiences. The Haymarket Squares know how to speak to a broad audience song to song, and it’s only making this record stronger, in my opinion. Unless of course, you don’t like facing the truth in lyrics with such direct diction. Again this isn’t a club mix of songs, although I could definitely see ‘Let’s Start A Riot’ appear as a dance remix.
‘Fortunate Son’ is a cover, but man, what foot-stomping arrangement. The lyrical content perfectly fits with this group’s overall voice, and hearing it folked-out will definitely awaken something in you. There are great vocal harmonies throughout this one too. I was also pleased to see that my buddy Greg Wingard is a part of this stellar group. Loved his work in Tin Can Tourists!
The final track is aptly named ‘Goodbye’. The whole time during this song I kept hoping there were some more tracks to hear. Warning! There are a fair amount of curse words and uncomfortable prose in this one, so I wouldn’t play this one for your kiddies during their birthday party get together.
The Haymarket Squares is a musical militia full of talent, punk, and saucy irony. Their new record ‘Light It Up’ is guiltless rant filled with sharp social relevance, crafty mischief, and melodic mastery.
Go buy it before the human race disappears!
Article written by: Jacob Acosta
Jacob is a writer, producer, musician, and teacher who lives in Tucson, AZ. He has been a music professional in film, advertising, and performance for 14 years. Connect with him at:
