REVIEW: Gran Torino, Two (26.2 Music)
- Paul Andersen
A nine-piece band aptly named after the classic Ford muscle car, Gran Torino will get your feet hummin' as they blaze forth on their sophomore album, simply titled Two. Featuring a stylized take on 70s funk mixed with touches of hip-hop, Gran Torino comes at you with all pistons churning.
Hailing from Knoxville, Tennessee, the band chews up and spits out influences like so much Southern Comfort. You'll find traces of everything from Earth, Wind and Fire and Tower of Power to Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder in the mix, but it is done in a retro/modern gumbo that sounds surprisingly fresh, especially if this is your first go-round with this kind of music. They've listened well, and have furnished themselves with a 'Gran' sound of their own.
The three horn players first met in the marching band at the University of Tennessee, and there is a martial feel to the ensemble passages. GT is definitely a good-time party group, and the 200 plus dates they play annually has given them a really tight sound.
The album starts off with "Coup d'etat," an instrumental that sets the mood with the horns riffing against a fuzzed-out guitar. They then go through a program of tunes that surge and ebb with the feel of a late night roadhouse set. Vocalist Chris Ford has a soulful voice perfectly suited for the songs at hand, and by the time the checkered flag drops on this dance party, you'll be converted. If Gran Torino comes roaring down your two-lane highway, this disc is proof that missing them would be a sin.
