Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everette's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. "Hang Me Out To Dry" marks the epitome of the sound his album - 'Smell the Roses' - conjures: a not-so-idiosyncratic portrayal of the angst that inevitably follows lost love. Like all things placed just out of reach, like the green luminescence that lingers across the bay, "Hang Me Out" does just that - leaves us hanging, arms outstretched, waiting to welcome that which will never again be embraced.

Hang Me Out To Dry

Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everette's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. "Pining For You" brings a brooding, mood-saturating feel that coats the listener in a somber hue capable of drowning even the most experienced of music-divers.  The mopey pace and understated rhythm mix to the consistency of molasses, with each step through the bars and measures of "Pining" proving to be much stickier than the last. By the end of the song, we begin to feel the masochism inherent in the hurt of wanting something so terribly, and feeling something so strongly.

Pining For You

Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everette's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. In the second track from his debut album, 'Smell the Roses,' we began to formulate a picture of the object of the obsessive qualities of the album's other tracks, such as "Pining For You" and "Hang Me Out To Dry". For all great heartache, there first comes great love; as Ken beseeches, "look into my eyes / they're only for you...there's something in the way she moves" we catch a fore-shadowy glimpse of pain to come.

Something In The Way

Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everette's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. "Drive My Car" is another chapter in the story of love desired, love obtained and love lost; here, we approach the denouement - the darkness of the empty that not only leaves one in solitude, but leaves one desiring the absences of desire, that loneliness that beckons for the refrain: "take me away".

Drive My Car

Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everette's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. In his song, "Creep," a certain bitterness literally creeps into our understanding of the ego and makes us question those feelings that fester in the hearts of others.

Creep

Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everette's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. "Stay" provides us the prototypical framework for proper yearning. In other words, if you can't feel the bitter-sweet innuendo dripping from each dronish note, you either don't have ears or lack a heart. Here, we are reminded of those things which we take for granted, that can leave as quickly as they come, leaving us with only one plea: "won't you stay?"

Stay

Evoking the singular, yet piercing guitar licks of Neil Young with a rasp reminiscent of Cobain-era vocal flare, Ken Everett's solo project, Ferdinand the Bull, bridges the gloom of early 90's grunge with the folk rock-happy mainstay of modern music. "About a Girl" is just that, and more - it's about THE girl. A perfect song for wrapping up a somber album, the final track from 'Smell the Roses' rewards us with that elusive love that lingered and lilted but ultimately evaded every other track. As the singer declares definitively, "I know your mind / I know your heart." He's taken the whole album to prove it; who can argue?

FerdinandTheBool