  [Tooth & Nail] • February 24, 2004 urlLink Starflyer 59's Official Website Jason Martin and his ever-changing supporting cast that make up Starflyer 59 have made a pretty solid career out of cranking the amps up to 11. So why should he change anything? I Am The Portuguese Blues is another hard-nosed, balls-on-the-wall, all out rocker, harkening back to the days of his first three albums (this is now his 8th full-length). Right around the fourth or fifth album, Martin's sound changed a bit. It was a subtle change, not a huge departure by any means, but it was noticeable nonetheless. The songs took on somewhat of a breezier, poppier feel. Even though Martin was still making good use of his wide array of effects pedals, the Beach Boys influence was thrown out there a lot more often than the previous comparisons to Smashing Pumpkins and the sort. Don't get me wrong - even with the change, I thought Starflyer kept improving with each album. Something, however, has sparked Martin to put all of that behind him and fully revert to his old ways, which he hinted at doing on last year's Old . So he dug up this batch of songs he had written during the recording of Americana and re-recorded them. His vocals seem grittier and blues-ier than ever before on "Unlucky", and the raucous guitar chugging and screeching solos throughout the whole album remind me of something from a Black Sabbath or Iron Butterfly record.
"Sound on Sound" is very Zeppelin-esque, and "The Big Idea" is just a classic Starflyer song that sounds like it could fit perfectly on Silver or Gold , Martin's first 2 releases. This album also does a good job of maintaining the signature blue-collar feel that has marked all of SF59's previous works. I have to wonder if Martin's truckdriving day job has anything to do with that. This guy is, like, the John Henry of indie rock.
A little birdie by the name of Woodsie told me that Starflyer's already headed for the studio next month to start working on a promised 2nd album for 2004. But while I Am The Portuguese Blues may only be "the new album" for a few months, it won't be getting old in my headphones anytime soon. 
