The Senators – Harsher Than Whiskey/Sweeter Than Wine

Who doesn’t love an exquisitely played banjo? What about some well-placed harmonica? Or is the mandolin more of your fancy? Trumpet? Well, The Senators have it all on their newest album Harsher Than Whiskey/Sweeter Than Wine. I must say I was more than surprised by the musical talent of this Phoenix based indie/Americana group consisting of Jesse Teer (vocals, guitar, mandolin), ‘Rooster’ Teer (bass, harmonica), Amber Johnson (keys), Carlos Villegas (banjo, guitars), Joe Bitz (trumpet, guitars), and Jason Yee (drums).

Harsher Than Whiskey/Sweeter Than Wine is the complete package for the listener. All the instruments meld together in blissful harmony that can only be described as addicting. It also helps that lead vocalist, Jesse Teer, has a voice that almost seems to be whispering the lyrics to the listener as if he were singing the listener a lullaby, but it is by no means boring or lethargic sounding. Quite the contrary, Jesse’s vocal performance is entrancing and demands the attention of the listener without being abrasive or overpowering to the instrumentals that compliment each other in a delightful fashion Now, I feel like I need to clarify that not all of the songs resemble that of a lullaby. The Senators know when to kick it up a few notches with songs like “Lazarus” and “The Sea and Its Floor” are two amazing examples of the versatility of the musical quality on Harsher Than Whiskey/Sweeter Than Wine.

The whole album takes the listener back to what we could image to be simpler times of the old West. It is quite fascinating. I think the one song that really brought that thought to mind was “Harsher Than Whiskey.” All the songs are easy to understand and to enjoy which makes listening to the album extremely easy to do and as a listener it is easy to hit repeat and spend your day in a folk related dream.