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Continental Drifters
Vermillion
Razor & Tie RTJC82848-2
It all began in a basement club in Hollywood, a weekly gathering of who's who with Dream Syndicate's Mark Walton the guiding force It was a collective that went by the name Continental Drifters That was the early 1990s.
Still standing, the latest and now longest running Continental Drifters configuration features alumni of such esteemed outfits as The dBs, The Bangles, The Bluerunners, the Steve Wynn
Band, the Cowsills. and Mr Walton of Dream Syndicate fame. A mixed bag for sure, but
"continental drifters" one and All
Yet for all that all star-ness and cult-like notoriety over the years, there's only been a single recording to show for it, a not-so-high fidelity, self-titled release from 1994 for a small . N ew
Orleans-based indie label. With the release of Vermillion, justice is finally served for this band
Fire, brimstone, and a seamless blend of rock, pop, roots and soul fills the grooves of Vermillion
It begins in resounding fashion with ex-Bangle Vicki Peterson singing her guts out on a passionate rocker called The Rain Song. On the heart-and-soul segue called Drifter, Peterson loosely tells the tale of this ensemble of soulmates The message 9 Enjoy it while it lasts and Vermillion certainly testifies to the fact that these folks are creatively in bloom.
The baton gets passed to girl singer number two, Susan Cowsill, on the fiery followup Way of the World, which features
mesmerizing harmonies'from the two ladies. It's ex-dB Peter Holsapple's turn next on the speedy rocker Don't Do What I
Did, before the serenity of the jangly Spring Day in Ohio, written by Cowsill and on which Peterson does the vocal honors,
settles the senses. Peterson returns the favor on the next track, a tune she wrote called Watermark with Cowsill at the helm
and featuring some awfully pretty mandolin from Robert Mache' And that's just how it is Each player taking her or his turn and
as a collective, never missing a beat With Vermillion, The Continental Drifters go for the jugular and get it They also make
the long wait seem all the more worthwhile
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