The Maldives — Listen To The Thunder

Upon opening CD case and seeing a picture of the band, I said to myself, "With this many members — and look at the length of that one guy's beard — this band has got to be great."

Opening song "Goodbye" is a decent match to the spirit of that photograph. Imagine Magnolia Electric Co. expanded to a nine-piece with three Jason Molinas singing, add an omnipresent fiddle, and you'll be close to approximating what The Maldives sound like at their loudest.

While the songs on the album's first half are mostly of the stomp and romp hoedown variety, The Maldives eventually slow down to a Royal City-like pace, settling into a mix of roots rock, bluegrass and country that houses elements of the Drive-by Truckers, The Moondoggies and The Weight.

A couple of the later, softer tracks drag on a little too long to be enjoyable — into the seven- and eight-minute range — but on the whole, Listen To The Thunder is a competent sophomore effort.

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