It’s pretty rare when I listen to music that I’m paying attention to the lyrics but I’ll be damned if Walking Papers doesn’t paint some compellingly stark yet incredibly moving visuals.  I mean, hey, the music is often killer and matches the mood but I feel like I’m listening to the soundtrack of a movie adapted from some cheap pulp fiction crime novella featuring fractured relationships and various sordid characters from the dark and grimy streets of the big city straight out of a Scorcese film.  This ain’t no “happy happy joy joy” at all…  no, this is often bleaker.  Still the occasional ray of light will shine through and offer hope for the parties involved.

Walking Papers’ debut disc released in 2013 was one of my favorite releases that year and when word came out that album #2 was due in early 2018, I quickly went to the PledgeMusic site and plunked down my $12 on a preorder.  First cut I’d heard from that debut was the stomping “The Whole World’s Watching”, featuring Barret Martin’s Bonhamesque kicks anchoring a semi-doomy yet bluesy Sabbathesque riff, which hooked me immediately.  The rest of the disc was just as incredible, mixing similar rock tuneage but what really grabbed me was the overall rich, bluesy, and soulful vibe of the seamier cuts featuring the smoky vocals of Jeff Angell, whose half-sung/half-spoken depictions are hued in various shades that often add to the various tensions in the music (check out “The Butcher” and “A Place Like This” for examples).

So how about that second disc?  If you liked the debut, you should like this one as well.  Overall it may rock a little more than the debut and the mix is a little more compressed and dense, thickening up the sound a little more as it dirties up the guitars yet flattens Martin’s drumwork.  The debut had a bit more clarity and openness with cleaner separation between each instrument that provided some excellent sonics, which worked incredibly well with the songs.  Still, this is a minor knock on the disc as it does offer up a slightly different vibe, maybe showing a more confident and comfortable band that has no problem playing off each other and jamming a little bit more than on that debut.

Enough of the sound quality…  what about the songs?  Kicking off with a bouncy rocker in “My Luck Pushed Back”, the band swing a bit mightier and harder across a good chunk of this disc.  If that’s your bag, then jump straight to heavyweights like the punky “Somebody Else”, the swirling thump and swing of “Hard To Look Away”, or the Deep Purple grooves in “Into The Truth” for some solid rock.  But if you are like me, the atmospherics of this band are truly their bread and butter-  songs like “Red And White”, “Yours Completely”, “This Is How It Ends”, and “I Know You’re Lying” are some of the real standouts here, although all four are totally different from each other…  “Red And White”‘s dark and desolate landscape is similar to the songs on the debut while the sexy and pulsating drive in “Yours Completely” is its polar opposite , and “This Is How It Ends” is a swirling groovy maelstrom with a fantastic lyric about…  well, just take a listen below. But “I Know You’re Lying” may be my favorite of all-  with a tempo laid back and in the pocket, the song sits back and gives the melody ample space to shine.  And when the short coda hits, the result is truly sublime.  A dead on stunner with a fine, fine lyric.

If I had to pick an unsung hero on this disc it’s keyboardist Benjamin Anderson, who splashes a lot of color on most every song-  a little bit of piano here, organ stabs here, and various other touches.  Odd that I didn’t pick up on his handiwork on the first disc, but on WP2 he’s mixed a bit higher and on some songs he acts more as a lead instrument (the heavy organ vibes on “Into The Truth” and “Death On The Lips”; the spacy keys on “Right In Front Of Me; the hook in “I Know You’re Lying”).  As for the rest of the band-  rhythm section is incredibly solid; I’ve already talked about my love for Barrett Martin’s work but Duff McKagen is spot on with his basslines, often comping the guitar work or providing unique grooves on his own like in “Yours Completely”.  As for guitar and vocals?  Once again, Jeff Angell shows off his subtle and smoky style on each song and his guitar work is a perfect accompaniment to the band and songs, mostly solid rhythm work (and cool slide too, check out “King Hooker”!) with the occasional tasty lead break.  Seriously, this guy should be a star.

If you like elements of classic rock with some dirty blues, excellent musicianship, vivid lyrical content, and killer songs, then Walking Papers’ WP2 is for you.  And while you’re at it, pick up that debut too.