Donna the Buffalo - Positive Friction

Roots-rockers Donna the Buffalo count both Bob Marley and Ralph Stanley as major influences. It's a tribute to the band's musicianship and to the songwriting talents of Tara Nevins and Jeb Puryear that they are able to blend such disparate styles into a cohesive whole. On "Yonder," for example, the sound of Nevins's Appalachian fiddle and slightly nasal country voice soar over the driving drum and wah-wah guitar groove as if it is the most natural thing in the world. And their mournful version of "Man of Constant Sorrow" is such a surprisingly perfect blend of tropical island rhythms and old-time mountain harmonies, you wonder if Ralph Stanley might have spent some time as a member of the Wailers. But for all of their contemporary genre-bending, Positive Friction has an earthy feel that makes you realize they are just an old-time string band who have picked up a few tricks to help them survive in the modern world. --Michael Simmons Amazon.com

Once you hear them your hooked!

I first heard No Place Like the Right Time two years ago on a college radio station from Hartford, CT WWUH. I just had to know who this was singing this wonderful song. Luckily WWUH can be heard on the internet [...] and I was able to get the playlist that morning. I immediately bought Positive Friction and after listening to the album, I had to have it all.
I am now a 100% devoted DTB fan and I can't get enough. I am eagerly awaiting their next album. If you have the opportunity to see them live you will be totally mistified as I was at the Rhythym and Roots Festival where I first saw them. They are by far the best fun band out there right now in my opinion. July 29, 2006

Nice

Ilove this cd. I love her voice! what a good kick back, kinda mellow, kinda groovy music. I would love to see these guys live. March 20, 2006

A long, long wait has paid off

I first saw this band at Riverbend in Chattanooga and my cynical musical heart skipped a beat. I couldn't believe I was hearing music this original, this fun, this RIGHT. I am a wandering pilgrim of a Deadhead, and I have been so disappointed in all the vane attempts other bands have made to try to capture that musical magic that it has left me wondering if there was any music out there that would ever grab my attention again. Phish was sophomoric and forgettable, ditto moe., Widespread Panic completely escaped me, etc. etc. These bands would pop up on the horizon, offer lame lyrics and forgettable monotonous melodies, and I wondered if any band could get it right. Well, Donna the Buffalo got it right.

This is a great album to start with, in my opinion. I did, and I'm a serious fan now. The music is so incredibly addictive and listenable that it didn't leave my CD player for weeks after I got it. They can (gasp!) write gorgeous melodies!! They can (imagine!) construct interesting and poetic lyrics that actually make sense! I couldn't believe my ears. Music I hummed again, all day long. Little turns of phrase that crept into my speech and thoughts. What a refreshing thing.

Try this band out on this or any other of their discs. This one is as good as any. But I've never heard a band (except for one) that had this much quality stuff to lay on the table. Enjoy, and eat hearty. February 4, 2003

still rumbling along

I'm going to disagree with my fellow Rochesterian and say that this is a good DTB album with which to start, if you haven't heard them before. It was recorded live in the studio, so it managed to capture the headlong-but-relaxed feel of their live shows better than any previous album.

The title cut, "Positive Friction", is one of the best Jeb Puryear songs yet. He generally comes up with at least one anthemic epic per album (e.g., "Conscious Evolution" on Rockin' in the Weary Land and "Mystic Water" on The Ones You Love) and this is the brawniest one yet.

In this band Tara writes the pop songs and Jeb writes the rock songs. They are both excellent songwriters and the polarity of their styles is part of what broadens the appeal of the band and also creates the tension that is at least part of what makes their live shows worth seeing.

DTB beat the Coen Brothers to the punch with their re-recording of "A Man of Constant Sorrow" and Jim Miller does as good a job with the song as Norman Blake did on the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack.

Check out DTB's website to pick up their new double live CD. Then you will *really* know what all the fuss is about. December 21, 2001

This is real music from inside America!

Donna the Buffalo are like Dylan meets the Wailers via Louisiana and Appalachia. On this record, they manage to capture almost perfectly the wonderful, warm, homey rhythm that is really their main appeal. I don't care for most "jam" type music, but the thing that makes this music irresistable is the fact that the deep grooves and improvisational parts never lose the sense of the main tune that everything is built around. The music is, on some level, always pretty. It is also an ineffable combination of so many American genres of music that fans of country, reggae, rock, any branch of American folk music, and zydeco music will all find something familiar.

Now, about "Positive Friction" in particular: Donna the Buffalo is a band to hear live. That's the truth. BUT this album does manage to translate the energy and sound of the band live into very enjoyable snapshots. All of the elements are there, and it is hard to pick out a standout song. "No Place Like the Right Time" mixes a rich sense of harmony with a kind of country wistfulness that contrasts nicely with Tara Nevins' other more groove-based songs on the record. "Positive Friction" is a good example of the band's really striking sense of rhythm that encorporates a tonal breadth. With a booming bass guitar note marking the beginning of each chorus and the higher sounds of the washboard mixing with the drums, the beat of this song is as important and as recognizable as the tune itself.

As my final recommendation, I just need to say that this is also a hopeful, happy thing to listen to, even if some of the songs deal with sad or angsty subjects. The music is also a rich, generous celebration of rural America which, being from here and living here still, I can relate to and really like. August 23, 2001

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