Dig Thy Savage Soul

Digital

LP includes digital download version of the album

A wealth of atomic-powered, sock it to me R&B and rock & roll hoodoo. Barrence, possessing otherworldly pipes that range from a low feral growl rumbling the nether regions to a scream that would make Little Richard blush, belts out originals and crate-diver covers.

Full Description

Boston’s legendary Barrence Whitfield & The Savages’ new album Dig Thy Savage Soul is a wealth of atomic-powered, sock it to me R&B and rock & roll hoodoo. Barrence, possessing otherworldly pipes that range from a low feral growl rumbling the nether regions to a scream that would make Little Richard blush, belts out originals and crate-diver covers with the formidable and aptly-named Savages. They keep his back with a punk rock grit and blues ferocity that lives in the frets between Chuck Berry and Jack White. Together, Barrence & the Savages lay down a groovy racket that’s so thick and greasy, you need moist towelettes near the hi-fi.

Dipping their gut-bucket deep into the well of America’s dirty musical soul, Barrence & the Savages’ sound is a sweaty elixir that enlivens, exorcises, and energizes on Dig Thy Savage Soul. “The Corner Man” bursts out of the gate, as much a child of the Sonics as a father to the Dirtbombs; it’s the Savage-Mobile neutral-slamming out of the garage. “My Baby Didn’t Come Home” and the love letter to the iconoclastic Oscar Levant (a man in chaos in search of frenzy...Google it, man.) burn with a roguish swamp mojo; bonus points for the killer jump-soul horn section. On “Daddy’s Gone to Bed” and the badass Jerry McCain tune “Turn Your Damper Down,” Peter Greenberg’s guitar plays like the lost Sun Records collaboration between Howlin’ Wolf and Carl Perkins. “Hangman’s Token” starts as a low-fi hill country shimmy harkening back to the early days of Fat Possum Records that then explodes into a tasty hard rock feast.

Out front, Barrence is preaching to a congregation we definitely want to join. “Bread,” a Bobby Hebb B-side done with a Glimmer Twin strut, has Barrencematter-of-factly distilling all the nuance, confusion, and frustration of any relationship into the simple inarguable truth: “Only one thing in this here world/ to make you popular with all the girls/ and that’s BREAD/ that’s what I said.” Lee Moses’s “I’m Sad About It” is a slow burn gospel headbanger, conjuring a completely unhinged Al Green tossing sweat and blood soaked scarves from a fiery pulpit. Sho’ nuff. Where’s that towelette, again?

Short Description

Energetic and wild, this album is an all-around ass shaking groove fest.

— The Horn
Walking the genre splitting tightrope of blues, soul, and rock, with an incendiary vibe that would make Dante himself blush.

— Cool Album of the Day
Thrilling comeback by Boston belter with ire in his belly…a ferocious blast of distorted guitar riffs, skronking sax and explosive testifying. 4 out 5 stars.

— Mojo UK
Don’t “Turn Your Damper Down”…Turn it up!

— Elvis Costello
Whether you're new to the scene or a longtime fan, Dig Thy Savage Soul is a primo slab of garage/R&B/soul/blues power from one of today's top practitioners of the art…[the] dude's having a blast---crooning, howling like Howlin' Wolf, shouting from the rafters.

— PopMatters
So do yourself a favour, and play this record at a raucous party in your parent's garage. The roar of Whitfield's vocals and the swing of the Savages are bound to raise the temperature up a few degrees.

— The Oxford
Whitfield and the Savages never let up, pummeling your heart and your eardrums with some of the rawest soul to come along since Pickett and Redding. It's a welcome assault, as soothing as it is savage, and long overdue.

— No Depression
Showcases a wild musical abandon.

— USA Today
The best record of the band's career...definitely a prime contender for the year's happiest surprise.

— The Vinyl District
Some folks can't be tamed…the Beefy baritone and his Boston vets continue their wild ways, roaring through bare-knuckle nuggets that mine garagepunk, twangy rockabilly, sax-maniac R&B and organ soul. 3.5 out of 4 stars.

— Winnipeg Sun
One spin of Dig Thy Savage Soul and I was hooked!…[It's] one of the most high energy, butt shakin', punky-soul-garage-rock records in recent memory. The 12-cut CD doesn't let up for a minute, from the opener "The Corner Man" to the Yardbirds-inspired "Hangman's Token." This is sweaty, dance till you fall down raucous stuff that I imagine could tear your head off live.

— Ink 19
…a dozen pulsing, Nuggets-y guitar-and-horn-driven blasts, barely pausing for breath. 8 out of 10

— Uncut UK
From the borderline punk of opener 'The Corner Man,' this verily screams, 'The Savages are back!' Greenberg's aggressive guitar is equal parts blues and pre-psychedelic garage _ like Whitfield and his battleship ofa quartet, truly savage.

— Vintage Guitar
The band continues to offer a punked up reimagination of R&B and Eddie Cochrane-like roadhouse rock, fueled by dirty guitars, honking sax, occasional greasy B-3 organ, Whitfield's stentorian R&B shouts and growls, and offbeat subject matter.

— Boston Globe
Whitfield and co's second full-length since their 2011 revival stares down middle-age stasis with a dozen pulsing, Nuggets-y guitar-and-horn-driven blasts, barely pausing for breath.

— Uncut Magazine
[The Savages] seem to be on a mission to peel the paint off the studio walls with their blistering solos...At the risk of overpraise, Barrence Whitfield is a treasure, with unbelievable pipes, an unimpeachable discography (with great taste in cover tunes) and undeniable appeal.

— PopMatters