The Family Wash is a collective not unlike Songs & Stories. In fact, the vocals of Paul Dunbar and Naomi Campbell are reminiscent of Tennessee Twin. That same easy listening Country/Americana defines their sound. It can be found right across their album ‘Dirty Laundry’, a record that works well with its vocal contrasts and traditional musicianship. It certainly has that Classic Country feel about it.
The opening bars of first track ‘I’ll Bring the Stars to You’ have a bit of a contemporary twist a la Luke Combs. The driving guitar and piano set the listener off down a gravel road with plenty of fuel in the engine. Things quickly slow down though once it gets going, ‘The Tide’ turning in more ways than one to bring the first of a number of contrasts on the album. The despair (made even darker by Dunbar’s bass-like vocal) doesn’t last long however as the light-hearted ‘Well, Obviously’ and head-bopper ‘I Don’t Want to Dance’ testify. They bring a gentle sway to proceedings in the way that only classic Country Music, with its acoustic guitar and pedal steel, can.
Sandwiched in between is ‘The Family Wash’, a metaphor laden with references to Country Music in its sound, sights and lyrics. The line “rinsing away memories of heartache… that soap wouldn’t touch / left stains upon our hearts” is perhaps the most evocative on the album, and when complete with aching fiddle and Dunbar’s deep vocal, it becomes a song with echoes of Johnny Cash storytelling. Indeed, the Man in Black is referenced in ‘I’ll See You in Jackson’, an alt-lovesong that, with the addition of Naomi Campbell’s voice, becomes a sweet, pensive tune in the style of her other band Motel Sundown. ‘Your Other Face’ has similar vibes, but ‘Catch of the Day’, with its honky-tonk sound, is a reminder that The Family Wash is always harking back to an earlier era.
It is this classic streak that runs through ‘Dirty Laundry’, underlined by the contrasts in the male-female vocal combos, and the use of fiddle, pedal steel and acoustic guitars, that makes for such a pleasurable listen. ‘From the Crowd’ is the perfect track to end, exemplifying an old-school beat with enjoyable rhythm.
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