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Bumbershoot

Bumbershoot Review: Old 97's: Too Little Angst and a Whole Lotta Hip-Shaking

By Paige Richmond, Sat., Sep. 5 2009 @ 9:28PM
Comments (1)
Categories: Bumbershoot

4old97s.jpg
Renee McMahon
Rhett Miller, with Old 97s, at Bumbershoot on Sept. 5.
​
Who: Old 97's
Where: Samsung Mobile Mainstage
When: 7:45 p.m.

With his near-mullet and tight button-up shirt, you could call Old 97's lead singer Rhett Miller the poor man's John Mellencamp, but that's not really accurate. He's more like the upper-middle class man's John Mellencamp. There's so little angst and commentary in Miller's country songs, and he lacks that rough-around-the-edges quality. Sometimes, he even seems happy, especially when he's impersonating Elvis Presley with his hips. Sure, he's got a song about being born in the backseat of a Ford Mustang and another about giving up on love, but that's nothing compared to the songs about middle America and mortality made famous by the man formerly known as John Cougar. The closest the Old 97's came to angst was when the band covered Merle Haggard's "Mama Tried." That's a song about heartache.

For all our festival coverage, visit Bumbershoot.SeattleWeekly.com.

Comments (1) Write Comment Email to Friend Print Article

Comments (1)

? says:

You obviously didn't pay very close attention to the song "Salome"
You ought to listen more carefully to their songs if you are going to criticize them.

Posted On: Sunday, Sep. 6 2009 @ 4:26PM

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