Cowboy Dinosaur's big heavy sound on "Cabin Fever" stirs up rock & roll imagery

AP Track Review

The latest track from Cowboy Dinosaur, the solo project of multi-instrumentalist / singer-songwriter Blake Hickey (The Late Great) is called Cabin Fever, a follow up to the debut album "Hyperbola" released earlier this year via Rue Defense. From the onset, Cabin Fever is steeped in a big heavy rock sound. I actually thought of black leather clad rock bands circa 1982 on the Sunset Strip (Hollywood) with low slung Les Pauls and big curly mops of hair.  

While Hickey's vocal prowess can shift to different genres and tones in cool ways (on "Hyperbola"), here on this specific rocker I thought so much of Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy. Besides the driving rock sound (a sound that feels so good when you are behind the wheel), the heavy handed drums with tight fills and wickedly bad ass lead break are so killer. Where are my black leather pants anyway?

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Robb Donker







THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

Cowboy Dinosaur is an indie rock band from Portland, OR. Their debut album Hyperbola was released April 5th, 2019 on Rue Defense.

The solo project of multi-instrumentalist Blake Hickey, Cowboy Dinosaur is anything but spare. Started as a bedroom project to ease feelings of depression, isolation, and social anxiety, Cowboy Dinosaur has morphed into a conversation about confronting those issues and the catharsis of music. Based in Portland, OR, Hickey has tapped into the communal energy of the area, and has become part of the music scene as a former guitarist for the band The Late Great and as the owner of a guitar pedal company, Blakemore Effects. Establishing connections within the music world and beyond has influenced Cowboy Dinosaur’s sound by foregrounding the need for personal interaction within our daily lives. Pulling from sources as varied as Silversun Pickups, Slowdive, and the chorus of Garbage’s 1995 hit “I’m Only Happy When It Rains”, Hickey’s first release is full of over a decade of virtuosic guitar playing and lyrical introspection.

Current Release:

Written during a massive snowstorm one winter in Portland, OR, Cabin Fever reminisces on the eerie quiet and emptiness of the city. Themes of isolation and introspection mix readily with strained vocals and guitars as Hickey takes the listener through the cold streets. Recorded in his home studio, the track has a powerful energy that feels like the exultant cry of the last person left on earth. Cabin Fever is a standalone single in anticipation of Cowboy Dinosaur’s 2020 sophomore release.