Clem Snide will be in Dekalb at the House Café on the 27th of this month. With that in mind I got a copy of the latest CD from this outfit and gave it a spin. This is intriguing music that has as much in common with emo as it does with folk and country. Those are strange cohorts, but somehow it works in a charming, if odd, way.

The music here tends towards the mellow, but they manage to rock it out, too. The lyrics are often political and always thought-provoking and poetic. Musical comparisons to Radiohead would be in order, but also far too narrow to fit this music. You’ll probably also hear Bob Dylan, REM and even Johnny Cash. It’s a combination that seems to gel into a catchy and yet uniquely tweaked sort of sonic soup.

I like the disc a lot. It manages to bring quite a bit of variety to the table on every song. You won’t mistake any one track for another. The main musical creator behind Clem Snide is founder and songwriter Eef Barzelay, and listening to this it becomes quite obvious that he’s a musical force not to be ignored. This CD shouldn’t be overlooked either. It might not be my usual listening fare, but I like it a lot.