The captivating cornucopia that comprises Skindeep by The Forresters has been a constant companion over the few weeks it's been in my possession and it's also been the record that has people pricking up their ears whenever they've been in the vicinity. These songs of Anthony Bautovich, alumni of The Orange Humble Band, are realised with the assistance of a galaxy of great Aussie musicians, a rhythm section of Nick Kennedy and Steve Balbi, OHB's Matt Galvin on guitar and lap steel, Tendril Charlie Owen guitar and dobro and a host of others bringing horns, strings and keyboards to the party.

It's a luscious mixture of pop, rock, r'n'b, and country, tantalising and exploratory. It never rests on it's laurels: the songs develop and change as they progress, new elements continually introduced, new echoes from rock's rich tapestry setting off gentle footfalls down the passageways of memory. Bautovich's voice is strong, expressive and rides the genres effortlessly.

The georgeous magical carpet ride of 'Are You Ready" starts the proceedings. It sets a mood in that it demonstrates richness and variety but it's immediately followed by a racing rocker in 'Fool In Love". 'Outtamyhead" returns us to the pop mode with Peter Cross' horns reminding us of Love by way of Eric Mathews. In similar vein are 'Missing You" - tons of backing vocals and choruses and Hollies-like opening and 'Don't Leave Me Down", almost-chamber pop with such angelic voices.

The twang element comes to the fore with the tenderness of 'Tremblin'". Here the voice of Bronwyn Mulcahy counterpoints, and the late appearance of horns and strings in what has previously seemed rootsy is a fine example of this record's unceasing novelty. 'Wake Up" and 'Rescue Me" are both Big Star-like with lashings of Memphis and Exile r'n'bs not unsurprising from a guy who's worked with Jody Stephens and Jim Dickinson and never unwelcome. And finally the title track just sounds like an epic '70s stadium pop song from Boston or The Cars except it's infinitely more magical and simutaneously subtle.

Bautovich's OHB bandmate Darryl Mather has called the album 'Australia's first alt country classic". That's a good strapline for an advert but frankly too limiting, I'd just say, 'it's a kind of magic" and buy a beer for the magus.

Nick West - Bucketfull of Brains

Australische topper.
Wie twee jaar geleden heeft genoten van Humblin' (Across America) van The Orange Humble Band, schaffe zich onmiddellijk Skindeep van The Forresters aan. De Forresters zijn het geesteskind van zanger/gitarist Anthony Bautovich, die met Darryl Mather, Mitch Easter en Ken Stringfellow The Orange Humble Band vormde. Na de opnamen met die band in de Ardent Studios in Memphis keerde Bautovich terug naar thuisland Australië om te werken aan nieuwe liedjes voor zijn eigen project. Samen met bevriende Australische muzikanten, onder wie New Christs-gitarist Charlie Owen, nam hij dertien nummers op. Hij bracht ze onder de naam The Forresters uit op zijn eigen label Tom Thumb. Skindeep tapt uit hetzelfde vaatje als Humblin', maar waar de laatste meer rhythm ‘n' bluesinvloeden vertoonde, daar heeft Skindeep vooral een countryeske sound. De liedjes zijn puik in orde, want in een energieke en aanstekelijke stijl laat Bautovich – met melodieuze rockstem – fraai aangeklede composities de revue passeren. Stevige en pakkende rockers – Are You Ready, Missing You, The Way You Do – worden afgewisseld met voortreffelijke ballads – Tremblin', Don't Leave Me Down, God Willing – en de stijlen worden schitterend versmolten op het titelnummer Skindeep, dat als bonus nog eens wordt overgedaan in een alternatieve mix. The Forresters hebben met Skindeep een meer dan uitstekende poprock-cd gemaakt, die de tijden van Australische bands als The Church, The Stems en Hoodoo Gurus ten volle doen herleven. (Verkrijgbaar via tomthumbrecords.com.)

4/5 STARS

Wiebren Rijkeboer

Heaven - (The Netherlands)

The Forresters – Skindeep
A real grower that has become a permanent fixture in the frequently malfunctioning CD player of my '93 Saturn. More Matthew Sweet than Teenage Fanclub, the group's softer side is just as compelling as their rockers. Power pop fans have no excuse for ignoring them!
Firesideometer - (USA)

Anthony Bautovich, the mastermind behind the Forresters, was also intimately involved with that sublime Aussie powerpop outfit the Orange Humble Band and he continues a fine vein of form with Skin Deep which contains all the ‘oohs' and ‘aahs' you'd come to expect from guitar pop down under. Highly recommended.
Kevin Mathews - Power Of Pop

The Forrester es el nuevo proyecto de Anthony Bautovich, conocido musicalmente por formar parte de la banda trans-oceanica Orange Humble Band, junto a Mitch Easter, Ken Stringfellow y Dari Mather.

'Skindeep", es una fantástico álbum fraguado entre el powerpop de claro regusto setentero y con clara denominación de origen australiana, bañado en country y el rock más clásico. Para sacar adelante tamaña empresa Anthony Bautovich, sumó a un conjunto de músicos que han arrancado a las melodías de este trabajo una calidez de sonido extraordinaria, tratadas con gran emotividad y honestidad . Destacar entre la nomina de invitados a Nick Kennedy (Knievel) a la batería, Steve Balbi (Noiseworks) al bajo, y Charlie Owen (New Christs) y Matt Galvin (The Scruffs) a las guitarras. Una superbanda a la altura del resultado final.
Rafa García-Moreno - 09 Ene 2005 - Sonicwave Magazine - (Spain)

Vennligsinna power pop

Anthony Bautovich er ein sangar og låtskrivar frå Sydney, som eg går ut frå ikkje så mange har høyrt om. For underteikna er han i alle fall heilt ukjent. Det blir då litt ekstra hyggelig å kunne melde om ein låtsnekker som veit kva som skal til av krydder og tilsettingsstoff for å skape tiltalande pop/rock. Til å hjelpe seg på albumet Skindeep har han fått med seg diverse folk frå musikkmiljøet i Sydney. Prosjektet/bandet har fått navnet The Forresters (visstnok etter ein av Australias talrike såpeoperaer), og resultatet dei serverer her i sitt første forsøk er ei plate full av straight og godhjerta pop-rock med meir enn ein avstikkar til alt-country sfærer.

Når The Forresters i det nær magiske powerpop-nummeret Are You Ready fyller på med blendande Teenage Fanclub inspirert harmonisang har dei lagt grunnlaget for ein poptur i godhetens og mimringens teikn. Der Bautovich og gjengen opererer ein eller annan stad i skikte mellom The Byrds sine meir countryinfiserte stunder og Badfinger sin sensitive powerpop. Og sjølv om dette indikerer ein melodiøs og stemningsfull musikalsk retning, ligg ikkje låtane heilt fram idagen, og treng nokre rundar før dei får synt fram sitt sanne ansikt. Eit ansikt som viser seg å ha både vemodige trekk og godlynte linjer. Og gjer i det heile inntrykk av å være eit ualminnelig sympatisk bekjentskap.

Det dei skulle mangle i originalitet tar dei igjen i ulastelige og til tider intrikate arrangement, og ikkje minst gjennom frodig harmonisang. Kanskje aller best demonstrert i nydelige Tremblin', ein dynamisk og skjør countryrock låt som blør, og ber forsiktig om medynk; "Stripped, cold and blue, tremblin' without you". I samme gata losjerer også Don't Leave Me Now, sjølv om den er utstyrt med eit litt mektigare tonefølge. I Outtamyhead og Way You Do er dei inne på eit område som The Jayhawks har trakka mykje rundt på; popharmoniar med ein country-injeksjon.

Dei trør også til med litt riff rock à la The Rolling Stones og The Faces. For Wake Up med sine "hoo-hoo-hoo"-inspirerte klapping, boogie woogie piano og fleirstemte sang er sammen med Rescue Me The Forresters på sitt mest skrålande. Mens dei i tittelkuttet går for eit meir overveldande uttrykk, samstundes som refrenget er hudlause poptonar. Før dei til slutt renn ut i sanden med litt country-soul-pop i God Willing, ikkje heilt fjernt frå noko The Eagles kunne gjort i sine betre øyeblikk.

Jodå, The Forresters markerer seg med ei plate det absolutt er verdt å sjekke ut for folk som har lyst på litt fuzzfri og ikkje altfor balstyrig popmusikk.

5/7 - Oddmund Berge
Groove.no - (Norway)

"Mastermind" Anthony Bautovich ist wahrscheinlich nicht mal in seiner Heimat Australien in aller Munde, trotz seiner Veröffentlichungen mit der ORANGE HUMBLE BAND.
Mit vorliegender CD sollte sich das aber, auch in Europa, ändern, wenn die Leute nur mal ihre Ohren aufkriegen. Mit wirklich erstklassigen Musikern hat der Songwriter eine tolle Scheibe eingespielt.

Wenn man sich das Booklet dieser CD genauer ansieht (nicht nur das Mittelblatt, meine Herren!), kriegt man schon gleich eine Idee in welche musikalische Ecke es hier geht. Da stehen im Studio Fender Telecaster-Gitarren, Fender-Tweed-Verstärker, Vox-Amps, Leslie-Kabinette und die Typen dazu sehen aus, als wenn sie zu CS&N oder den "Heartbreakern" Tom Petty's gehören würden.
Und da sind wir auch schon in der richtigen Ecke. Beim ersten Durchlauf kam mir alles noch etwas zu popig vor, beim zweiten war der Zugang schon leichter und ab dem dritten kriegt man manche Songs gar nicht mehr aus dem Schädel.

Weil's mit Are You Ready nicht gleich krachend losgeht, haben meine Ohren wohl nicht richtig funktioniert. Allerdings kommt durch Fool In Love schon richtiger Power-Pop hinterher, mit gehörigen Rock-Elementen und schon das lässt dann schon aufhorchen.
Musikalisch ist also viel Tom Petty zu hören. Mal ruhiger, mal popiger (Missing You), auch mal Richtung BYRDS und auch rockig (Wake Up, Rescue Me). Und ob der tollen Gesangsharmonien sind die EAGLES bei so einer melancholischen Country-Ballade wie Tremblin' nicht weit entfernt. Auch bei Don't Leave Me Down ist die Westküste (die amerikanische!) wohl eine der Paten.

Bei The Way You Do liegt es wohl nicht nur an der Slide-Gitarre, dass ich an George Harrison's Midtempo-Songs denken muss. Und bei Skindeep ist die John Mellencamp-Verwandtschaft auch nicht nur auf die Violine zurück zu führen, was aber bei allen Vergleichen und Querverweisen nicht bedeuten soll, hier kupfert einer ab. Nein, da ist viel zu viel Eigenständigkeit in den Songs und man könnte genauso auf "Alt. Country" verweisen.

Wie gesagt, bald kriegt man Songs wie die überwiegend akustische Ballade God Willing, den herrlichen Country-Pop von Don't Leave Me Down oder den Rocker Wake Up nicht mehr aus dem Kopf und ebenso wenig wie das hübsche Girl im Booklet am Straßenrand, sollten Sympathisanten obiger Musikrichtungen diese CD im (Internet-) Laden stehen lassen.
Ach ja, bevor unser aller "letzter DJ" sich verabschiedet: Hier wäre noch etwas Material für ihre Sendung, Herr Petty!

Epi Shmidt
Home of Rock - (Germany)

Con "Are you ready", nos adentramos en el apetecible mundo de estos jóvenes australianos en la que sería la primera referencia del sello novel y de idéntica nacionalidad, Tom Thumb Records. Demostrando que han mamado directamente de los sonidos noise-pop de formaciones de principios de los noventa, sin esconder sus referencias y con ejemplar honestidad. Contando además con unas letras que nos retratan las mieles y cales de la vida.

Después, le siguen temas como "Outtamyhead", de similar belleza compositiva, que engancha a la primera, quizás debido a sus toques a lo new country, o a sus susurros corales. Acariciando las partes más melosas, en algunos casos, de la escena de aquel momento, pero arrancando también, desgarros espontáneos como los de "Fool in love", de clave marcadamente popera o "Rescue me", mucho más country-rock si cabe.

Así es este "Skindeep", que realmente consigue enclavarse en nuestros poros de modo tajante, y eso que, aún demostrando portar años de experiencia a sus espaldas a través de otras formaciones como Orange Humble Band, The Scruffs o The New Christs, este es el primer disco de los miembros de la banda como The Forresters en sí.

Siendo este un trabajo de trece cortes, que pasará por nuestros oídos y en consecuencia por nuestra mente, con la velocidad de un rayo que encadena su energía con la evidencia de ser necesario para el medio, en este caso, la escena de su país, y estirando sus ramificaciones eléctricas al resto de la tierra tratando de alcanzar todos los rincones posibles.

Pop Child - (Spain)

La nascita di una nuova casa discografica è sempre un piccolo evento che nella maggior parte dei casi si accompagn all'uscita di un buon disco, questo nostro caso non smentisce questa regola. L'etichetta in questione è l'australiana Tom Thumb Records, la band porta il nome di The Forresters capitanati da Anthony Bautovic frontman e producer del gruppo. Il disco è bello, suonato bene e con ottime canzoni! Il territorio nel quale si muove il gruppo di Sidney è quello delimitato tra un certo power pop ed un sano roots rock, il sound che ne risulta è una miscela spumeggiante con buona predominanza di chitarre, tastiera ed una solida base ritmica. I primi due brani pongono i confini destro e sinistro, tutti gli altri vi si incanalano. 13 canzoni dal grande sound e con le giuste vibrazioni, una buona amalgama strumentale con bei solo ed interventi gradevoli di fiati. clap hands, cori per un disco d'esordio con i fiocchi. Lo guardo della band è chiaramente rivolto agli states ma la musica australiana mantiene comunque un accento diverso che conferisce alle melodie una differente leggerezza e libertà di espressione così da dare l'impressione che terminato l'ascolto di questo Skindeep l'ascoltatore ne esca in qualche modo corroborato con un disco pronto a ripartire all'interno del lettore CD. Grande band, gran bel disco e... un good luck alla Tom Thumbs Records, che ci possa regalare in futuro altre perle di rock!

4/5 stars

Backstreets - (Italy)

Post aus Australien. Anthony Bautovich schickt uns sein neues Album. Den aufmerksamen Lesern dieser Seiten ist der Name vielleicht schon einmal begegnet, denn Anthony war als Sänger und Gitarrist an Darryl Mathers Orange Humble Band beteiligt. Während er dort beim Songwriting Mather und beim Leadgesang Ken Stringfellow den Vortritt lassen musste, ist er bei den Forresters nun endlich wieder sein eigener Boss. Die Musik klingt trotzdem (ähnlich) gut. Zeitloser Power-Pop, hier und da mit einem Schuss countryesker Glückseligkeit à la The Byrds: Melodiös, eingängig, mit schönen Harmonien und im Vergleich zu der Orange Humble Band mit ein bisschen mehr Rock-Feeling und streckenweise etwas mehr 70s als 60s beeinflusst, aber deshalb keinen Deut schlechter. Die übliche Besetzung aus Gitarre / Bass / Schlagzeug wird hier und da wirkungsvoll mit Bläsern und Hammondorgel ergänzt, wobei vor allem letztere dem Album natürlich seinen charmanten, warmen Grundton verleiht. Die Single "Are You Ready" kann man sich gratis auf der Bandwebsite herunterladen, doch das ist noch nicht die beste Nachricht. Noch besser ist: das Stück ist nicht einmal das Highlight des Albums. Ein Geheimtipp!

Carsten Wohlfeld

http://www.gaesteliste.de/review/show.html?id=3f75549e640184&_nr=3771 - (Germany)

Van heinde en ver, uit Australië om iets preciezer te zijn, komen The Forresters met vijf man sterk en een debuut-cd op het kersverse label van Tom Thumb.
De alternatieve countrygroep onder leiding van zanger en liedjesdichter Anthony Bautovich vindt zijn oorsprong in lokale bandjes met illustere namen als The Orange Humble Band, Big Heavy Stuff, Universe, The Polaroids en Dark Horses, waarbij ik u voor meer informatie hieromtrent moet doorverwijzen naar de Australische popencyclopedie.
Als het aan ons ligt, zijn The Forresters daar binnenkort eveneens in te vinden. Hun Skindeep is namelijk een erg goede cd.

Het duurt altijd even voordat geluidsgolven van de beschaafde wereld het ver weg gelegen kangoeroeland bereiken. En dat is te horen, want The Forresters weten bijvoorbeeld nog niet dat een gitaarsolo eigenlijk niet meer kan in deze tijden. In het hard rockende 'Rescue Me' wordt zodoende flink uitgehaald. Voor de rest valt het best mee en staat Skindeep bomvol met melodramatische gitaarrock, waarvan wij sterk vermoeden dat The Forresters zich lieten inspireren door de countryrock van The Byrds en de alternatieve, pretentieloze gitaarpop van de tachtiger jaren. De bewogen vocalen van Bautovich bevatten in ieder geval genoeg emotionele lading om een vergelijking met Michael Stipe niet uit de weg te gaan.

De aftrap met heerlijke rocknummers 'Are You Ready', 'Fool in Love' en 'Outtamyhead' roept herinningen op aan The Posies. De rustige nummers, waaronder het fraaie 'Trembling', bevatten juist iets meer country-invloeden. Een jankende lapsteel of een dubbele zang doen meteen denken aan The Jayhawks. Eigenlijk vallen alleen het eerder genoemde 'Rescue Me' en een overbodige remix van het titelnummer een beetje uit de toon. Met Skindeep hebben wij dus vooral een schitterend en veelbelovend debuut te pakken, waarmee wij gerust durven te stellen dat de Australiërs in één klap een plaatsje hebben verworven in de vaak verguisde popcultuur van hun thuisland.

tekst: Maurice Dielemans

Kinda Muzik - (Holland)

The Orange Humble Band are one of those great unknown bands – impossible masters of pop, they’re basically unknown out of the circles in which they beaver away. But those that are won over by their impossibly great songs know full well how good a songwriter Anthony Bautovich is, so when he announces that he’s going to do something different with his next project, it’s fair reason to get excited.

That new project is the Forresters, a loose assembly of accomplished players playing loose alt.country, which owes a lot more to the prefix than it does to the pronoun. More often that not, much of debut album Skindeep is blindingly good pop songs, with Nick Kennedy (from Big Heavy Stuff) and Steve Balbi (Universe) laying down a solid rhythm for Bautovich’s songs to bounce along with. The opening two cuts – “Are You Ready” and the fantastic “Fool in Love” – are superb power pop, while “Outtamyhead” slows it down a notch and is sparked by some delightful trumpet, and is very reminiscent of Teenage Fanclub circa Grand Prix.

The first hint of anything alt.country comes on “Tremblin’”, with a slower and more laidback style to it all, Bautovich’s vocals echoingly reminiscent of Gram Parsons. “Missing You” has a great guitar solo in it courtesy of Matt Galvin, while “The Way You Do” opens with some fantastic slide guitar work from Charlie Owen. Perhaps the thing that most stands out about Skindeep is how consistently excellent the songs are – backed by some an outstanding rhythm section, they’re always simple and direct, with Bautovich always in charge and lyrically direct.

“Wake Up” is a great country rocker, while “Don’t Leave Me Down” surprises by having multi-tracked vocals and some gorgeous lap-steel. It’s the simplicity and sincerity of Skindeep that makes it sounds so good. Bautovich’s vocals are incredibly direct, and the emotionally naked “What You Want”, where it seems to be Bautovich’s vocals and acoustic guitar, some gentle lapsteel, simple percussion and some female backing vocals, is just outstanding. The title track is a great little rocking number augmented by viola, while “Rescue Me” thumps along with vigour, and the closing “God Willing” reverts to the simplicity of “Don’t Leave Me Down”.

Skindeep deserves more recognition than it will probably get. Mixed by Wayne Connolly, it all gels together so sweetly, and the songs feel and sound so genuinely heartfelt that it’s hard to fault the record. With such a range of sounds – from power pop, to acoustic odes, to country rockers, and all points in between – the Forresters have delivered a debut album with a great deal of depth to it. Fingers are crossed that this will prove to be more than a one-off venture, as there’s an incredible sense of togetherness about the sound of Skindeep, and to see it finish up after one album would be a huge shame.

Andrew Weaver

The Electric Newspaper - (Australia)

Having worked behind the scenes with the Orange Humble Band on their two previous albums, Sydney based singer/songwriter Anthony Bautovich takes the spotlight with his new outfit The Forresters to create a stunning debut album of delicate roots based pop. Bautovich's time spent recording with The Orange Humble Band shows through on this disc as he reaches a new found maturity as a singer, songwriter and producer. Where as the last Orange Humble Band album "Humblin' (Across America)" relied upon some amazing overseas session players to replicate a genuine feeling of the deep American south, Bautovich is able to achieve similar results on this album with an all Australian cast, making Skindeep all the more impressive.

The arrangements on this album are well thought out and give an indication of the amount of time and effort that has gone into creating this record. Intricately placed touches of strings, dobro and brass often add further life to songs that are already living and breathing. "Are You Ready" is the perfect opening track for any great power pop record with its rich layered harmonies and McGuinn styled guitar jangle making it sound like a lost Teenage Fanclub track. "Outtamyhead" is the perfect coming together of pop and country and is the first indication of the more roots based feel that the latter half of the album displays. "Tremblin'" is a gorgeous ballad with just the right amount of Gram and Emmylou thrown in, while the Black Crowes type riff that drives "Wake Up" shakes things up just enough without the album ever losing its sense of direction.

While the songs on Skindeep are strong on there own, they wouldn't sound the same if it were not for the diverse range of talented musicians Bautovich has been able to assemble. Steve Balbi's subtle yet melodic bass on "Don't Leave Me Down" is almost as beautiful as the driving violin provided by his Universe band mate Sean Windsor. Cameron Bruce on keyboards knows when to let loose and when to hold back, while Charlie Owens unique dobro touches on tracks like "God Willing" and "What You Want" are some of the albums most beautiful moments.

Skindeep is a superb debut album, and while I don't think people will be claiming The Forresters to be the future of rock anytime soon, they could very well prove to be an important band in these parts.

Oz Music Project - (Australia)

Es gibt Alben, die machen es einem einfach schwer, darüber zu schreiben. The Forresters aus Australien haben mit "Skindeep" solch ein Album aufgenommen

Obwohl ich ja nicht gerade als Balladenfan verschrieen bin, geht mir "Skindeep" mit seinen Liebesliedern unter die Haut. Die Stimme von Mastermind Anthony Bautovich (Sänger und Gitarrist der Pop-Rocker The Orange Humble Band, bei denen aber Darryl Mather die meisten Songs schreibt), der von der leicht nuscheligen Art zu singen ein wenig an Tom Petty erinnert, schmeichelt sich während der 12 Songs ständig in die Gehörgänge, dazu kommt die angenehm beatlesque Musik mit George Harrison-Gitarren ("The way you do"), gelegentlichen Country-Untertönen und weiblicher zweiter Stimme ("Tremblin'", der Höhepunkt der CD) oder lockerem WestCoast-Rock ("Wake up" oder der Titelsong). Hier und da noch ein dezentes Bläser-("What you want",) oder Geigenarrangement ("God Willing"), etwas früh 70er-Stones-Sound ("Rescue me") und fertig ist ein rundum gelungenes Album voller guter Songs und handgemachter Musik.
Was es letztlich so schwer machte, darüber zu schreiben? "Skindeep" ist ein stilles Album, ohne knallige Hits oder vordergründig innovative musikalische Ideen, aber ein Album, das man immer wieder hören kann, mit einer Handvoll Ohrwurmmelodien, die einen tagelang begleiten können, ohne sich zu verbrauchen. Und das ist eine etwas in Vergessenheit geratene musikalische Qualität!

Dominik Engel
Bloom - (Germany)

Desde Australia, y a través del joven y entusiasta sello Tom Thumb Records nos llega el debut de The Forresters, el proyecto personal de Anthony Bautovich, un amante de las melodías pop con el bagaje de haber formado parte de The Orange Humble Band, una de las bandas más conocidas del popular sello Half A Cow Records.
Es "Skindeep" un disco que se muestra maduro y optimista, con un sonido deudor del de bandas como The Posies o Big Star y al que no falta un delicado toque country e incluso una suculenta pizca de soul.
Quizá, en la búsqueda de ese sonido, que resulta personal y familiar al mismo tiempo, haya resultado decisivo el gran numero de instrumentos utilizados para su grabación. Entre ellos encontramos violines, violas, saxofones, cellos o trompetas a cargo de un numeroso elenco de músicos con el que Bautovich ha contado para la realización del álbum.
Si por algo destaca "Skindeep" es por aunar las diversas facetas de las que hacen gala The Forresters. Por un lado la alegre y festiva de la primera mitad del disco, allí y, como si de un grupo californiano se tratara, nos topamos con pildorazos pop como "Are You Ready", "Fool In Love" o "Missing You". Por otro la deudora del Neil Young más intenso, donde la acertada "Skindeep" destaca notablemente. Entre estos dos extremos, la desnudez e intimismo de composiciones como "Don't Leave Me Down" o "God Willing", donde Bautovich se nos confiesa abrazado a su guitarra. Y, finalmente, el poso soul de "Tremblin'" y "What You Whant" donde unas elegantes voces y unas sugerentes trompetas nos recuerdan a los mismísimos Tindersticks.
Resumiendo, un disco variado con una cuidada producción que no se pierde en divagaciones y en el que Bautovich se presenta en sociedad como un honesto compositor todo terreno que dispara certeramente a nuestras debilidades más dispares. Muy recomendable.

Monocromo - (Spain)

Unter dem Titel Skindeep präsentiert Australiens erste alt.country-Band ein beeindruckendes Debütalbum. Es ist das neueste Projekt des in Sydney lebenden Singer/Songwriters Anthony Bautovich, der zuvor bereits zwei Alben mit der Orange Humble Band eingespielt hat. Die dabei gemachten Erfahrungen haben ihm sehr geholfen, wie er selbst sagt und ihn erst darauf gebracht ein solches Album wie Skindeep zu machen.
Neben seinem langjährigen Freund Darryl Maher wirkten auf dem von Bautovich selbst finanzierten Werk einige der talentiertesten Instrumentalisten aus der australischen Musikszene mit, darunter Steve Balbi (Bass), Charlie Owen (Guitar/Dobro) und Matt Galvin (Guitar/Lap Steel).
Das in Sydney eingespielte Album schöpft aus den unterschiedlichsten Musikrichtungen und das obwohl die Songs ausnahmslos von Bautovich geschrieben wurden. Das Spektrum reicht von Power Pop über bluesig gefärbten Soul und schnörkellosen Rock 'n' Roll bis hin zu alt.country. Dass sich die Forresters damit ziemlich weit von dem entfernen, was man gemeinhin als traditionelle Country Music bezeichnet versteht sich von selbst. Wer aber experimentelle Musiker schätzt, interessiert auf neue Strömungen reagiert und neugierig ist auf ein perfektes Zusammenspiel von Pop, Rock und Country der sollte sich die Songs der Australier nicht entgehen lassen. Das geht ganz unkompliziert über die Webseite ihres Labels unter

Country Jukebox - (Germany)

Just as autumn arrives, as the leaves turn orange and the heavy cold dew presages the first frost, the sound of summer arrives. Bright harmonies, guitars that really should be pouring out of open car windows, joy in a Teenage Fanclub / Jayhawks vein. They hail from Australia so I guess it is perpetual summer for them and with this on and the heating clanking through the pipes for the first time, it is for me too. There's no clanking on the record, it is all smooth; 'Outamyhead' is fresh and breezy power pop topped with the parping of horns. 'Tremblin'' is a slow ballad, with dobros calling in mists of organ and beautiful harmony vocals from Bronwyn Mulcahy, just the song to curl up in front of a fire with. Most tracks have something that standout; 'Missing You' has one of those guitar solos that pluck at your intestines, 'The Way You Do' has a great slide guitar opening, 'Don't Leave Me Down' pulls out multi-tracked vocals like a chorus of angels learning the devils songbook. 'What You Want' has simple acoustic guitar and vocal, like Love stripped down to the basics. You need a full wardrobe for winter and here whether power pop, country rock or acoustic, there are enough layers to keep anyone warm. Many of you will know Anthony Bautovich from The Orange Humble Band and this is every bit as good as anything he's done, make it your soundtrack to de-icing. Get over to www.tomthumbrecords.com and keep out those winter chills.

4/5 - David Cowling
Americana UK - (UK)

På sitt beste er australske The Forresters like stilrene og melodisterke som Jayhawks og Grand Drive, men totalt sett er "Skindeep" litt for ustabil til å pirre nysgjerrigheten helt fram til salgsdisken.

Særlig når bandet forsøker å sy inn powerpoplåter i et ellers klassisk alt.country-konsept, røper The Forresters at talentet trenger å modnes litt før de kan gjøre seg ordentlig bemerket på markedet.

The Forresters er en fortsettelse av singer-songwriter Anthony Bautovich og hans The Orange Humble Band, og "Skindeep" er deres debutplate. Bandet holder seg trofast til countryrockens standardbesetning av bass, trommer, steelgitar, piano og sang, men rekker aldri å bli kjedelig av den grunn. Melodiene er lette å få tak på, og arrangementene er fulle av finurlige detaljer, som virkelig smiler av spilleglede under countrybarten. The Forresters vet hvordan man skal resirkulere fengetriks uten å høres for imiterende ut.

Dessuten stiller Anthony Bautovich med et svært karakteristisk stemmebånd, som forsterker bandets egenart ytterligere. På notepapiret likner melodiene ofte på hvordan Ryan Adams og Jayhawks beveger seg ved vokalmikrofonen, men Anthony Bautovich har en helt annen holdning i fraseringene, ikke så ulikt kultartisten Anton Barbeau. Klagende og hverdagsstygg, men samtidig sjarmerende og full av personlighet.

Dessverre har The Forresters et par merkelig krumspring, som er så grove at selv de sterkeste høydepunktene på plata blekner. I "Fool in love" likner The Forresters mer på Teenage Fanclub enn på The Byrds, og det kler dem svært dårlig. Tenk om Radiohead skulle spilt "Wonderwall" og "Live Forever" midt i "OK Computer"? Motsetningene i "Skindeep" er nesten like åpenbar. Og det er trist, fordi de store nedturene vil hindre mange i å oppleve hvor fantastiske The Forresters kan være i sine beste øyeblikk.

Nett Puls - (Norway)

This is Pop cantavano ironicamente i cari XTC (dove siete? tornate presto) ad inizio carriera: adattatiamo l'espressione alla musica degli australiani The Forresters e diciamo This is Power-Pop, o almeno quello che normalmente dovrebbe intendersi per tale definizione. Skindeep possiede tutti gli ingredienti del genere e in un mondo alla rovescia piazzerebbe quattro o cinque pezzi nelle charts radiofoniche. Non funziona così al giorno d'oggi, lo sappiamo bene, e per questo motivo mi ritrovo ad inserire il disco nella rubrica degli Outtakes, indeciso se classificarlo come un disco indie-alternativo o classicamente rock. Va da sè che queste sono solo chiacchiere da recensore, perchè Skindeep è semplicemete un bel disco, pieno di melodie frizzanti, chitarre spiegate e un sacco di coretti in sottofondo. Anthony Bautovich è il direttore d'orchestra: canta, si occupa delle chitarre ritmiche e produce, aiutato da bravi e sconosciuti (almeno al sottoscritto) musicisti della scena di Sidney come Matt Galvin, Steve Balbi e Nick Kennedy. Non è uno sprovveduto, ha fatto parte dell'interessante progetto Orange Humble Band, suonando con gente del calibro di Jim Dickinson e Mitch Easter. Adesso si è messo in proprio con un progetto del tutto indipendente, ma che suona brillante quanto e più di un qualsiasi prodotto di una major. Questa è la caratteristica che spiazza in Skindeep: viaggia che è una meraviglia, anche se mantiene una sensazione di dejà vu. Are You Ready, con quell'impasto melodico alla Big Star (Bautovich deve averli ascoltati fino alla noia), il power-pop classico di Fool in Love, le dolci armonie di Missing You e The Way You Do fanno parte del suo repertorio migliore. Ogni tanto spuntano anche sax e tromba e ci si sposta verso i colori del soul, in qualche modo ribadendo il debito verso un personaggio come Alex Chilton. Con Wake Up e Rescue Me si passa addirittura al rock'n'roll più sfacciato, modello Stones per capirci. Un vero peccato che nella seconda parte Anthony si perda in ballate troppo zuccherose (Don't Leave Me Down, What You Want) e arrangiamenti fuori luogo (gli archi in God Willing): il giudizio cala leggermente ma non intacca le sensazioni positive che l'intero disco sprigiona.

(Tommaso Piccoli)
Roots Highway - (Italy)

Verschrikkelijk foute naam! Zeker als je weet, dat hij ook daadwerkelijk aan de protagonisten van de soapreeks "The Bold And The Beautiful" ontleend werd. Gelukkig blijkt dat zowat het enige minpuntje aan het Australische vijftal dat met "Skindeep" een kanjer van een debuutplaat aflevert. The Forresters zijn het geesteskind van Anthony Bautovich, die al enige bekendheid geniet omwille van zijn betrokkenheid bij The Orange Humble Band. Vanuit Sydney verbaast hij vriend en vijand met een collectie goudeerlijke liedjes, die variëren van alt. country tot power pop en terug.
Opener "Are You Ready" bijvoorbeeld is één van onze kandidaten voor liedje van het jaar. Heerlijk rinkelende gitaartjes, de een weinig aan Roger McGuinn herinnerende stem van Bautovich en een melodie met een erg hoog Byrds-Teenage Fanclub-Posies-gehalte vormen de ingrediënten voor één van de aanstekelijkste deunen die wij in tijden gehoord hebben. En het blijkt bovendien allesbehalve om een alleenstaand geval te gaan. "Skindeep" puilt immers uit van de prettig in het gehoor liggende nummers die je bij elke beluistering nog een beetje nauwer aan het hart gaan liggen. "Fool In Love" is zo een de luxe rockertje in de beste Posies-traditie. En "Outtamyhead" koestert zich net als het openingsnummer in een weldaad aan gitaren met als surplus bovendien wat subtiel blazerswerk. En ook als er wat gas teruggenomen wordt, zoals in "Tremblin'", "What You Want" of "Missing You" staan de Forresters meer dan hun mannetje. Waar de hoger al genoemde tracks zich eerder als power pop laten omschrijven, mogen de zachtere nummers echter duidelijk onder het kopje alt. country worden bijgeschreven. Daarbij benadert men vrij regelmatig de topmomenten van de Jayhawks. En dan zijn er nog het knappe, duidelijk naar Neil Young lonkende titelnummer, waarvan ons liefst twee versies worden voorgeschoteld, en het ronduit schitterende "The Way You Do", dat zich misschien nog het makkelijkst laat omschrijven als The Beatles Meet The Byrds.
Voorwaar geen klein bier, wat Bautovich en de zijnen op hun debuutplaat klaarmaken. Een plaat die nu al volop doet uitkijken naar meer. Gezien het al erg hoge niveau van "Skindeep" moeten de Bautovich en de zijnen immers in staat worden geacht vroeg of laat een echte tijdloze klassieker af te leveren. Een plaat die je absoluut niet wil missen!

4/5 - Ctrl.Alt.Country - (Belgium)

What's the first thing you think of when you play this album, the first release from a newly-formed Australian label? Apart, of course, from the fact that it sounds mightily like Tom Petty distilled through a million jangle-rock influences? That it features Anthony Bautovich, one-time luminary of near-legendary Orange Humble Band? Well, ye-e-es. But there's another thing. Not got it yet? OK, then. Here it is. Skindeep is not produced by Michael Carpenter. There, I've said it. The man who seems to behind everything that comes out of Oz - except, probably their rugby union team, and there again I might be wrong - has nothing to do with The Forresters at all. God, that makes me feel better. Now I can listen to this fine debut without prejudice. For it is a decent record, this, full of light and shade, bursting with great tunes and happy, hooky, singalong choruses - "Are You Ready", "Rescue Me" and "Missing You" are stone-cold hummers. And, well produced as it is - by the selfsame Bautovich - is doesn't quite have Carpenter's signature studio sheen. Skindeep is alternately polished and rough; indeed a couple of the tracks are greasy in a slide guitar, Stonesy sort of way. Bautovich flings power pop, sub-Byrdsian folk ragas, a touch of George Harrison - "The Way You Do" could have been from the late Beatle's last album - and a bit of sixties easy-listening brass into the melting pot to come up with a sound that, in truth, could really be anyone. That's not to say The Forresters haven't made a good album - this is very listenable in a classic, non-threatening way - it's just that there are so many ideas flying around their identity fails to assert itself. I'm sure it will, eventually, when Bautovich decides to strip off the excess fat. Until then, Skindeep will settle nicely into anyone's record collection. Only don't expect it to change the world. Not yet, at least. --john Stacey

Erasingclouds - (UK) sydicated to Net Rhythms and Comes with a Smile.

Previously available as an internet-only release, 'Skindeep' is about to be released to the world at large by more 'traditional' means. Whilst there have been a few snide comments about the choice of name for the band (derived by way of a well known soap), I found the album title to be of more topical interest - although it is obviously taken from the song with the same title, the romanticism in me decided that 'skindeep' indicated that the music on the album harked back to the more basic roots level of the various genres that have influenced the Bautovich penned songs on 'Skindeep', and then later decided that (whether intentional or not) that the album title could (or should) be interpreted as an invitation to dig a little deeper than the surface, and discover hidden treasures below the surface.

Anyone already familiar with Bautovich's music pedigree will hardly be surprised to hear that this latest material from his pen is as spellbindingly beautiful as anything he has been involved with. Bautovich has a knack for allying himself with the cream of his musical contemporaries, and where he has previously collaborated with more internationally recognised names such as Ken Stringfellow (Posies) and Darryl Mather (Lime Spiders) in the form of The Orange Humble Band, and John Rooney/Mitch Easter, by way of Coronet Blue, this time he relinquishes the security blanket of a co-writer, and dons the creative mantle himself. Having said that, he surrounds himself with an impressive arsenal of core backing band and contributors, although the roll call will perhaps be a little less familiar to the international audience that the impending world-wide release is aimed at - nevertheless equally illustrious names.

The nucleus of The Forresters comes in the form of Bautovich himself, Steve Balbi (Noiseworks, Eletric Hippies, Universe), Matt Galvin (Eva Trout, The Wake Ups, KingsRdWorks, The Whitlams) and Nick Kennedy (Big Heavy Stuff, Knievel). Legendary session guitarist Charlie Owen (Dark Horses, Working Class Ringos, Tendrils, Catfish) features strongly on the album, his presence unmistakable on 'Tremblin'.

Perhaps 'Tremblin' is as a good a place to start as any. Since the album is being widely touted as an alt.country album (rather than from the power pop stable that Bautoviches name is more usually associated with), 'Tremblin' perhaps epitomises this break from the norm. A ballad with spacious twanging guitar and beautiful female backing vocals (courtesy of Bronwyn 'Grizabella' Mulcahy), verging on duet rather than backing vocals, one can hardly deny that parts of the the album do indeed lean towards alt. country, perhaps even more so than some of the recent material from long-standing artists from the genre, but I found this to be more by way of supplementary instrumentation than overall style. Anyone who tells you that the powerhouse rock on 'Wake Up', complete with Black Crowes/Stones riffs and the raunchy female harmonies that one might expect to hear on a Jimmy Barnes album, is alt. country, needs to reexamine their concept of different music genres.

Whilst the general power pop ambience of songs like 'Are You Ready' and 'Fool In Love' will endear 'Skindeep' to Bautovich's existing fans, the inclusion of backing musicians from almost every conceivable musical genre, together with influences from these genres, means that the songs on this album will appeal to a far wider audience. There's an unexpected equilibrium to the songs, considering the cross-genre influence, and the album as an entity should appeal to fans of all the contributors to this album, be it those of meaty rock a la Balbi, the commercial end of Galvin's guitar pop collaborations, or Owens' rambling and spacious guitar and dobro. Other musicians have been called upon from even more diverse musical backgrounds: jazz, opera, musicals..... both Jess Ciampa (Bernie Hayes Quartet, Warmer) on percussion, and Peter Cross (trumpet) hail from the last OHB album line-up; Sean Windsor (violin) was brought in from Balbi's 'Universe line-up, and by association, adds weight to the rock aspects of the album, along with Cameron Bruce (on loan from The Polaroids) on keyboards. There are wonderful string and horn arrangements, often found on a pure power pop album, on the likes of 'God Willing' and 'What You Want', which further amalgamate the different musical influences into a surprisingly cohesive album.

It's difficult to pick out a favourite track on this album. Co-incidentally, my favourites happened to be those songs which featured the female backing vocalists, Nikki Bennett and Bronwyn Mulcahy. Astounding performances by Bennett, considering 'that' rather naff David Essex cover single she released recently, and a even more stunning contribution by Bronwyn Mulcahy on 'Tremblin', although in this case not so surprising, considering her background (predominantly musicals, Les Miserables (Fantine), Camelot, Godspell, the German production of 'Cats', another ALW related tour of China, and the Australian production of Man From La Mancha - not to mention a stint with a covers band called 'Jealous Hand back in the mid-90's). Certainly, the more balladesque tracks are my favourites on 'Skindeep', although afficiandos of the power pop genre will no doubt argue the choice.

Overall, 'Skindeep' is a collection of lovingly crafted songs, with both a youthful vibrancy to the pop, and a maturity that comes from having collaborated with some of the masters of the genre, and together with the delicate excursions into the alt. country scene, this is a good example of a perfectly weaved tapestry of sympathetic roots driven pop that only an eclectic ensemble of musicians such as this could have made.

Musicworkz - (UK) "Feature Album"

De la Australia actual creo que a nivel musical conocemos poco a excepción de los cuatro figurines de la Mtv (Kylie Minogue, Natalie Imbruglia...), y algún que otro clásico (Dave Matthews, Nick Cave...) que se mantiene como puede. Tras los nombres conocidos queda un país del que solo recordamos cuatro tópicos y ni siquiera son musicales. Por eso el descubrir/encontrarse con un grupo independiente de aquella zona se puede decir que no es nada fácil y eso que los hay y muy buenos. Dejando de lado los datos geográficos, The Forresters son una banda de herencia norteamericana que ha bebido de la herencia country y folk y por supuesto del rock. Y por eso Anthony Bautovich se fue directamente al Ardent Studio de Memphis donde empaparse de la esencia musical del país. El resultado es este "Skindeep", un disco de pop rock facturado al estilo de antes con los recursos de ahora y en el que se aprecia la herencia de Big Star, y por consiguiente la conexión con Gigolo Aunts, Pyramidiacs, Teenage Fanclub, Posies, Mathew Sweet... por lo que el resultado ya se pueden imaginar como puede ser: guitarras brillantes, melodías encantadoras, historias de amor, juegos de voces... pero los mismos esquemas de siempre y la consiguiente repetición que, si bien no viene a portar nuevo, no importa en exceso porque en estos casos se trata de mantener intacta la esencia y disfrutar de los temas.

Alfonso Méndez
Satelite Pop - (Spain)

Chiudiamo con il debut-album dei Forresters, nuova formazione proveniente da Sydney composta da ex membri di Orange Humble Band, Knievel, New Christs e Noiceworks. "Skindeep", questo il titolo del disco, inaugura anche un nuevo marchio discografico, Tom Thumb Records, e ci mostra una band in grado di passare sesna soluzione di continuità da delicati bozzetti pop spruzzati di intingilo folk a scossoni power-pop, da episodi alt.country a brani dal tiro più diretto ma sempre dotati di un'indiscutibile vena melodica.

Rockerilla magazine - (Italy)

You would have seen a recent review we did on the Orange Humble Band's album "Humblin' (Across America)". Now, Sydney singer-songwriter Anthony Bautovich moves into a new project, The Forresters. Anthony's experience paves the way for a fine album of several delicious pop excursions. "Skindeep" is more Australian in flavour and the arrangements and lyrical content are very attractive and intricate. The beautiful harmonies of the song "Are You Ready" sets the scene for the remaining tracks, which contain an abundance of hooks and melodies. The songs bring together many able local musicians, including Steve Balbi on bass and Sean Windsor on a strong-sounding violin. Charlie Owen's driving guitar adds plenty of bite and fine keyboards playing add to the array of talent. All these elements of power pop, driving rock and soulful blues makes this an enjoyable album overall. I think this album will captivate a lot of people and it's something I recommend pretty highly.

Carmine Pascuzzi
Mediasearch - (Australia)

Those of you who were fortunate enough to grab a listen to ensemble The Orange Humble Band's 'Humblin' (Across America)' last year will be more than interested to take a peak at this new release. Anthony Bautovich from the aforementioned band has assembled this new entourage of musicians and carried forward the same kind of 21st century pop - rock formula that made the Humblin' Band such a thrill to listen to. Mixing elements of sixties west coast surf and folk rock a la The Byrds and The Beach Boys with some more contemporary rock, pop and country references this is an album that will leave you feeling enriched and not a little cheery.

'Skindeep' opens up, no - detonates into your consciousness, with the wonderfully light and refreshing pop textures of "Are You Ready", the rhythm section pounding away for all their worth, while we are introduced to the radio perfect vocals of Bautovich . The set pretty much keeps rolls on apace from that moment on, "Fool in Love" picks up from its predecessor but whereas the opener was on the pop side of the equation, this one rocks harder and is all the better for it. The harmonies that float in and out add greatly to the overall feel without overtaking the sound, and Bautovich's guitar playing reaches stratospheric twists and turns as the song approaches its climax. What starts as an out and out pop rock album soon re assembles itself as something a bit more bona fide American/altcountry (or whatever it is they call it these days!) Ballads like "Tremblin'" and "Don't Leave Me Down" emphasise the flexibility of the bands very full sound, the latter employing a sumptuous melody and touches of fiddle and dobro alongside Bronwyn Mulcahy's tender vocals pulling on all the heart strings at once. Reading between the lines "What You Want" employs a subtle Antonio Carlos Jobim, jazz inflection as the dobro and guitar lines fill the dreamy landscape, in a sort of 'jazz-grass' creation.

The title track "Skindeep" has the most effective driving country pop sound of the album, and really stands head and shoulders above the rest of the set. The jangling guitars over shimmering rhythm, supported by that good old stand by Hammond B3 and more of violinist Sean Windsor 's fine lines provide a luscious sound-scape which begs to be revisited time and again. There is in fact a second version of this cut tagged on at theend of the album, described as the "fademaster mix" (whatever that means??) I prefer the former, but then I'm an old fashioned kind of guy !

The supreme rock 'n' roll moment comes in the form of "Rescue me" the guitars really spill into overdrive with a Creedance Clearwater Revival kind of swamp blues beat that carries your feet off in their own direction while you sit and hand jive your heart away. The set comes to a satisfying conclusion with a beautifully constructed mellow "God Willing" which takes all the best ingredients and blends them into a stunning finale. The vocals are nevber more satisfying than here, the harmonies are exquisite and the guitar playing as tender and subtlety implemented as you could expect.

This is an impressive debut, and one where there isn't a foot put out of step. The material mixes up some classic pop/rock influences, and comes across with the sort of aplomb that is rare in a debut set. There is a small element of country that creeps in around the edges, and the music is all the more interesting when those touches appear, the dobro and fiddle work add colour and texture when the set could potentially drift into a formulaic ordinariness.

Lyrically it doesn't perhaps have a great deal of resonance, the themes are pretty much straightforward in the love-heartbreak-loneliness kind of direction and although they are economical and pretty direct, there is nothing here that will set the world alight, but then you don't get the feeling that is exactly the aim. The musicianship is excellent and production is crisp and clean creating a summery shimmer that is quite uplifting and never overbearing - a nice way to start!

Doug Floyd
Altcountrytab - (UK)

This Aussie ensemble's rousing debut is a timeless collection of British Invasion-inspired guitar driven pop strong enough to jolt Brian Wilson out of bed. Anthony Bautovich is the Forrester's brain trust, crafting memorable hooks embellished by vocal harmonies that are bolstered by Matt Galvin and Charlie Owen's slicing guitar licks and the rough and tumble rhythm section drummer Nick Kennedy and bassist Steve Balbi. 'Tremblin" features French horn motifs and a neo-psychedelic bridge that resurrects the daring cross-genre experimentation of the late 1960's early '70s studio-rock legends. Kinks chroniclers will enjoy 'Wake Up," comically introduced by Kennedy's sloppy drum intro and Bautovich's wry vocal phrasing. 'Rescue Me" exudes the kick-ass cow-punk most closely associated with Jason and the Scorchers, and the rollicking title cut blends rootsy violins, bleary arpeggios with in-and-out-of-phase ac! oustic guitars. Regardless of vogue, there's always a place for a band like The Forresters.

Amplifier Magazine - (U.S.A)

Als schoonheid slechts ‘skindeep' is, betekent dat mutatis mutandis dat deze Skindeep dus een schoon album is, en daar geven wij u gaarne een bevestiging van. De leden van deze nieuwe Australische groep timmeren al vele jaren aan de weg in allerlei bandjes; leider Anthony Bautovich genoot plaatselijke bekendheid in Sidney als voorman van de Orange Humble Band, wier albums mede succesvol waren door bijdragen van grootheden als Mitch Easter, Jody Stephens en Jim Dickinson. Dit debuut is meteen ook de eerste release op het nieuwe Tom Thumb label, en wij verwachten dat deze Klein Duimpje spoedig tot een grote duim zal uitgroeien; het begin is in ieder geval uitermate veelbelovend. The Forresters zijn een echt gitaarpopbandje, dat qua klankkleur zowel teruggrijpt op de ‘60er jaren (The Association, Sagittarius, Millennium, The Beach Boys) als op de wat steviger gitaarpop uit begin jaren '80,! The Knack, The Romantics, maar vooral The Jags! Voeg daaraan toe een vleug degelijke countryrock vanuit de Eagles-stal en u begrijpt dat The Forresters een breed scala aan stijlen beheersen. Op een stevig bedje van dan weer olijk klingelende en dan weer knoestig rockende gitaren dansen fraaie, meervoudige vocalen in het rond, ondersteund door leuke, luchtige koortjes. De aantrekkelijke Nikki Bennett doet even aantrekkelijke dingen met haar krachtige stemgeluid in de harmonieën, en de vernuftige arrangementen geven ruimte aan bijvoorbeeld nu eens blazers (let op de zware sax in de rocker Rescue Me!) en dan weer een soepele dobro. Het zijn in het algemeen knap geconstrueerde composities, waarin Bautovich in persoonlijke teksten zijn overpeinzingen verklankt. Het is zeker niet alleen maar up-tempo wat de klok slaat: ook de fragiele nummers en rustpuntjes tussen de krachtiger gitaarpop, zoals Tremblin', Don't Leave Me Down, maar vooral What You Wan! t, worden zeer overtuigend gebracht en behoren tot de hoogtepunten door de fraaie zang en originele arrangementen. Skindeep bruist van het vakmanschap en kruipt diep onder je huid, waar hij nog lang blijft kriebelen. Thumbs up! (RK)

RootsTown - (Belgium)

And now it's back to Australia for an Americana influenced slice of power pop. And it's rather splendid. All 4 tracks are taken from their debut CD, 'Skindeep' namely 'Are You Ready', 'Outtamyhead', 'Missing You' and 'Tremblin'. And it's 'Are You Ready' which is the peachiest of a pound of peaches. Resolutely upbeat, chockful of harmony vocals I adore, suuny and hopeful. Damn these pesky kids with their warm and sunny vibe.

Comprised of singer-songwriter Anthony Bautovich from the trans-Pacific pop ensemble The Orange Humble Band, Nick Kennedy (Big Heavy Stuff) on drums and Steve Balbi (Universe) on bass and augmented by Matt Galvin (Eva Trout) on guitar, Cameron Bruce (The Polaroids) on piano and organ and Charlie Owen's (Dark Horses) dobro playing, this is redolent of a golden period now past.

Working to the same template as major label Thorns, these are emotionally honest songs, powered along by sublime musical perfomances and intricate harmonies. On Tremblin' they even reach back to my beloved 'Farther Along' era Byrds to pull off another masterstroke of melody.

Gusset drippingly good, I feel moist with pleasure after The Forresters fourplay. The album can be purchased on-line at The Forresters website.

Zeitgeist - (UK)

The Forresters 'Skindeep'

Very occasionally a record will grab me from the first few seconds. The debut album from Sydney band The Forresters did exactly this. Skindeep is a chunky 12 tracker, with the almost obligatory bonus track to round things off at an unlucky for some 13. The awesome use of feedback in Are You Ready, the opening track, had me hooked and drumming on the desk. Drumming badly admittedly, but drumming all the same. These guys remind me an awful lot of Canadian band The Northern Pikes, a band that I always thought were one of the best at doing the folk / rock / alt-country thing. Sweet harmonies, interesting guitar layers and great hooks abound on this wonderful cd. It certainly has an impressive pedigree; Wayne Connolly did the mixing and Don Bartley the mastering. These two guys are always going to bring the best out in a band, and The Forresters haven't let them down.

The Forresters seem primarily to be a vehicle for the songwriting talents of Anthony Bautovich from The Orange Humble Band. He is ably assisted by an impressive lineup of talented musos. Nick Kennedy (Big Heavy Stuff / Knievel) on drums, Steve Balbi (Noiseworks / Universe) on bass, Matt Galvin (Eva Trout / The Wake Ups) on guitar and lap steel, Cameron Bruce (Karma County / The Polaroids) on keyboards and Charlie Owen (Dark Horses / Tendrils) on guitar and dobro. Now that is one mighty fine list of 'other' bands to stick on your bio. Guys this talented would not play weak songs, it is as simple as that. This thing may be 12 tracks long, but there are no fillers that will have you reaching for the skip button. Every track stands alone and, as is the generally the case with this type of quality music, every song tells a story and tells is well.

The songs on Skin Deep sway between country, folk, and straight out rock, but as an album they hold together brilliantly. This is definitely one to listen to from start to finish, and if you're like me once won't be enough. I get the feeling that the perfect venue for these guys would be a beer garden on a stinking hot summer's day with an unlimited supply of beer. My personal fave was the beautiful track Tremblin' with its haunting slide guitar and mad organ, but there's so many strong tracks here to choose from that personal faves really don't mean that much. If you like your rock a bit on the Buffalo Tom side of the fence, but with a bit more of a country bent, you should really get into The Forresters.

This is a truly great debut release... keep a lookout for these guys in the future, you will almost certainly be hearing more. Frank Boner (4 1/2 bones)

Bonemachine - (Australia)

Westzeit - (Germany)

The Forresters - Skindeep, is a wonderous journey into the heart and soul of frontman Anthony Bautovich, backed up by some of today's finest musicians, including Nick Kennedy (Big Heavy Stuff), Charlie Owen (Dark Horses) & Cameron Bruce (The Polaroids). It's very hard to place a genre on The Forresters, for their debut album Skindeep caters for everybody who listens & truly enjoys music, with a splash of 70's POP, to a touch of COUNTRY & a big bite of traditional ROCK & ROLL. Right from the opening track & debut single, ARE YOU READY, The Forresters create a feeling of joy & happiness which makes you wish you had a magical carpet to ride on, to the more straight rock numbers like RESCUE ME & WAKE UP, you find yourself unconsciously nodding your head to the beat.

In closing, I find the only difficulties The Forresters, Skindeep will have is that there is no cashed up money cow pushing this great album into everyone's face & telling them to go buy this record. Having said that, Skindeep is heart-tingling candy for the ears, do yourself a favour & buy 2 copies of this record, one for you & one for your mate, believe me they'll thank you for it.

Travis Broughton - host of 'The Slab'.

104.7 fm. ECR - (Australia)

'Fool in Love" encapsulates The Forresters' sound perfectly. Vaguely rock-injected pop music, somewhat like a more twee-influenced Barenaked Ladies, is what you can expect. This has mainstream potential, but don't be shunned for that reason - many of Skindeep's twelve pop songs could be hit singles, although are probably too 'soft' and innocent for nowadays' average radio station playlist.

'Tremblin", one of the album's best songs, is also one of it's calmest - lush, rolling guitar and trumpet are used to create a pretty, slow song that's tough not to like. 'Wake Up", meanwhile, like many of the songs on this disc, is a pleasant, country-influenced number.

Overall, Skindeep is not essential, but is simply a wonderful document of how pleasant music can be - The Forresters belong in any true pop lover's record collection.

82% - Matt Shimmer
Indieville - (Canada)

The Forresters - Skindeep (Tom Thumb Records)
Tanto per cominciare: ma il nome è un omaggio a Beautiful e alla famiglia del mascelluto Ridge (che - lo sapevate? - nei tardi '70 cantava in una band A.O.R.)?! Beh, comunque questa band dall'Australia è il progetto personale di Anthony Bautovich, già membro degli Orange Humble Band (di cui mi piacerebbe sapere di più, dato che hanno inciso un disco agli Ardent Studio di Memphis con Jim Dickinson e Jody Stephens - cioè parte della leggenda Big Star - e hanno pure lavorato con Mitch Easter, il primo produttore dei R.E.M. e membro dei semileggendari Sneakers, dalle cui ceneri nacquero gli ancor più oscuri ma seminali Db's), che qua si scrive da solo quasi tutte le canzoni.

L'allegato per la stampa parla di alternative country, ma a me sembra che il disco vada a parare un po' più indietro con gli anni, precisamente agli ultimi fuochi del Paisley Underground, quando gruppi come Green On Red (forse il riferimento più calzante) e Dream Syndicate pubblicavano dischi meno irruenti ma più raffinati, e forse ai tempi il buon Anthony non deve essere rimasto indifferente ai Soul Asylum di Grave Dancers Union o - a giudicare da una canzone come The Way You Do - al recupero del power-pop fatto da gente come Matthew Sweet. E cosa dire di Wake Up, che sembra scritta dai migliori Black Crowes? E What You Want non sembra uscita dal primo disco dei Commotions?

Insomma, vedrei bene questi ragazzi come gruppo spalla di uno come Bryan Adams (che potrebbe entusiarmarsi per un pezzo come Rescue Me), e se a uno piacciono tutti i nomi che ho citato (o se nella diaspora del dopo Uncle Tupelo fate il tifo più per i Son Volt che per i Wilco) sarebbe bene fare un giro su

4/6 - Giulio Oliveri
Sodapop - (Italy)

THE FORRESTERS - 'Skindeep'

Tom Thumb Records

Whether they're singing about the trials and tribulations of love on 'Fool In Love', or belting it out on the electric guitar drenched bar-room rocker 'Wake Up', The Forresters shift effortlessly between a number of jarringly different styles. Much of the album is country-tinged and there is a number of melancholic, emotionally affecting tunes, like title track, 'Skindeep'. Sung in a reedy voice, the acoustic-oriented 'Tremblin' is enhanced with flourishes of lap-steel guitar, horns, female vocal harmonies and string arrangements. Washes of delicate instrumentation forms the sombre backdrop to the impassioned and delicately beautiful vocal harmonies of 'Don't Leave Me Down'.

Brad Larter
Tsunami - (Australia)

The Forresters - Skindeep - 2003 - 13 titres - 55'22

Etes vous prêts ? Are you ready to a warm ride ? , I'll meet you on the other side ! L'autre côté, ce pourrait bien être l'autre hémisphère, car The Forresters est un groupe australien, créé par l'ex-The Orange Humble Band, Anthony Bautovich.

Maintenant que les présentations sont faites, il reste la musique ! Celle des Forresters est un pop légère, teintée de 70's. On savait que les Tahiti 80 avaient fait des émules de l'Angleterre (The Thrills) au Japon, mais il semble que l'Australie n'ait pu résister à la déferlante. Missing you, Outtamyhead… chaque titre fleure bon la pop sucrée et la simplicité.

Le groupe se dit fan des Teenage Fan Club, et l'on sent parfois l'empreinte des Posies (Skindeep, Rescue me…), lorsque la pop se fait plus rock, plus songwriting sur la fin de l'album. Mais ces comparaisons n'ont pour but que de cerner les personnages et vous donner envie d'écouter une musique belle et parfois émouvante aux antipodes de la France et même de Kylie Minogue ;-).
Reçu par courrier depuis l'Australie, le CD ne semble pas encore disponible en France, mais le groupe, via son site, vous permet de le recevoir pour 17 euros (pas excessif pour un disque qui va traverser la moitié de la planète… )

Mike S.
La MagicBox - (France)

The Forresters - 'Skindeep'
Tom Thumb Records TTR1

4 stars (out of 5)

SKINDEEP is the first release from new Australian label Tom Thumb Records, and it's also the debut offering from Sydney outfit the Forresters, formed by singer-songwriter Anthony Bautovich of the critically acclaimed Oz ensemble The Orange Humble Band. It's a cool-sounding album, and will surely find a home with the alt.country audience that is so enamoured of Vigilantes of Love and Golden Smog. The album opens hot and strong on the pounding rhythm and resonant multi-layered electric guitar chords of Are You Ready, with gentle female backing vocals lurking somewhere in the mix, and is swiftly followed by the equally supercharged Fool In Love. The pace cranks down somewhat after the continuing guitar sounds of Outtamyhead for the more reflective Missing You which, though still utilising layered guitars, opts for some wistful minor chord structures before reverting to a grating electric guitar solo. Then it's back to the beat with the blues-flavoured Wake Up, which is somewhat reminiscent of Wilco's Casino Queen, the amplified sounds of Skindeep (which also appears later on as a bonus track subtitled The Fademaster Mix) and the truly raucous rockblaster Rescue Me which, horns'n'all, could see just about anybody off.

These are all solid, competent rock-out numbers that will certainly be welcomed by No Depression devotees, but it's the softer, balladic compositions that really impress here: The Way You Do with its George Harrison-style slide guitar passages and mellow organ backing, the scintillating vocal harmonies of Don't Leave Me Down, the gentle acoustic picking of What You Want and the lilting introduction and sensitive lead voice of God Willing.

The real gem here, though, is the slow, dobro and organ-decorated love song Tremblin', a catalogue of tender, intimate reflections lifted by beautiful vocal harmonies from Bronwyn Mulcahy. To sum up, SKINDEEP is a well balanced mix of uptempo rock workouts and gentle story ballads that should please both followers of Bautovich and those who just like sound music. Nice one. Jeremy Issac

Maverick - (UK)

Interestingly, the other name on the production credits for '"Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre" belongs to Wayne Connolly and that name also appears on the Forresters' "Skindeep". In case you've been wondering what Anthony Bautovich has been doing with his spare time since Coronet Blue and the Orange Humble Band, then here's your answer.

Probably the strangest thing about this Forresters album is that it is not a Laughing Outlaw release, because it has everything that Laughing Outlaw usually go for in terms of hooks and harmonies - lush, sweet vocals, lots of tinkling and chiming from up at the top end of the percussive sound spectrum (not so much "bells and whistles" as bells and triangles) and plenty of hip thrusting power pop guitar (there's that Matt Galvin again!). It even leans a little in the direction of "alt.country" in places. You'd think that someone from Laughing Outlaw would have jumped on Anthony Bautovich the moment the album was finished and wrestled the master tapes off him before he was even half way out the studio door.

The tracks are all Bautovich originals, with the exception of two collaborations, one with John Rooney and the other with the shadowy Mr (or Ms) Watson (a re-recording of "Fool In Love" from the Coronet Blue album), which makes me think that the Bautovich/Rooney track ("Rescue Me") might have been intended for a second Coronet Blue album (if it was an outtake from the first one, then surely Laughing Outlaw would have slipped it on to the Coronet Blue re-release along with all the other bonus tracks).

Comparisons with Coronet Blue are inevitable and I have to say that this stands up very well. There's no single killer riff-monster like "Mission Bell", but the album opens with "Are You Ready", as clear and pure a piece of power pop as you could wish for. I gather this was the promotional single for the album, although I don't know if they really pressed up some actual, physical singles or if this was just a pretence agreed with a few radio stations in order to get some airplay. Either way, it sure deserves all the exposure it gets.
Next up the Forresters go head to head with Coronet Blue via the "Fool In Love" re-recording, which is seriously beefed up compared to the original, the Cars-lite riffing of the former submerged under some heavy duty guitar (several of them in fact) and a gaggle of those deep sounding, honking saxophones that Roy Wood seemed to like so much on the early Wizzard singles (you know the ones I mean: "Ballpark Incident", "See My Baby Jive", "Angel Fingers"...).

Then it's on to what at first sounds like a late sixties lost pop classic ("Outtamyhead"), with traces of Herb Alpert's brass jostling in the background with that swirling country fair organ sound that always reminds me of the early Band albums until the song gradually slides into alt.country territory before the decidedly country "Tremblin'" comes along to show us what country is really all about, even featuring Charlie Owen on the dobro (but this is certainly no Tex Perkins/Working Class Ringos wannabe trip), along with a cast of seemingly thousands on strings and brass and backing vocals (though Bronwyn Mulcahy's vocals are really a duet, like she and Tone have got a Gram and Emmylou thing going).

By this time you've basically heard all that the Forresters have to offer (yep, even the "fademaster" bonus remix of the title track right at the end - no nasty techno sting in the tail here I am relived to be able to report), but we're not even half way through the album yet and there's plenty of diversity along with lots of country rock and all the usual power pop influences and then some to come ("Wake Up" even has the loose white boy blues feel of the early, pre-Satanic Majesties, Rolling Stones).

On the pop side, I guess Teenage Fanclub would be the closest reference point, but as the album progresses and the direction leans more towards country, proceedings develop an elegant melancholy I tend to think of as "heartache lite", especially "Missing You", "Don't Leave Me Down Again", "What You Want" and "God Willing", although "Rescue Me" is an out and out rocker which recalls the Flying Burrito Brothers while leaving me wondering what it might have sounded like if it had got the Coronet Blue treatment.
The title track (either version) is the standout tune of the album's second half, but "Rescue Me" is a real grower. The Stones took "Honky Tonk Women" and went country with it, ending up with "Country Honk". "Rescue Me" sounds like a song that's gone the other way, something that might have started out in the country, but has gone big city rock in a big way.

4 Beers - John McPharlin
i94bar - (Australia)

Eine Reise um den halben Erdball musste die CD Skindeep der australischen Band The Forresters hinter sich bringen, um in meinen CD-Player zu gelangen. Ob sich diese Reise gelohnt hat (für wen auch immer), soll sich auf dieser Seite zeigen. Da man den Fünften Kontinent in letzter Zeit leider immer mit dem Hilfeschrei "Ich bin ein Star! Holt mich hier raus!" in Verbindung gebracht hat, darf auch die Frage gestellt werden, ob man nicht vielleicht die falschen "Stars" nach Deutschland (zurück)holte.

Im Einzelnen:

Die Forresters fallen nicht mit der Tür ins Haus, sondern lassen bei "Are you ready" (welch nette Anfrage!) eine Hammond B3 leise anschwellen und setzen dann mit einem Harmoniegesang ein, der sogar den Brüdern der Familie Everly zu Ehren gereichen würde, und bevor man sich zurücklehnen kann, wird gezeigt, dass es sich um keine CD für Schlaftherapien handelt, denn freundlicher, aber bestimmter Rhythmus entführt den Hörer in Richtung Gitarren-Pop mit REM-Einschlag. Der Song ist schwer zu beschreiben, aber das Wort "schön" trifft hier allemal zu. Ein bisschen rauer geht es schon bei "Fool in love" zur Sache. Ein paar Gitarrenriffs aus den 80ern und ein losbrausendes Schlagzeug bringen gleich richtig Schwung in den Laden. Aber auch hierbei geht die Harmonie nicht verloren, die durch einen flotten Backgroundchor noch Unterstützung findet. Wer auch nur einen Funken Rhythmus im Blut hat, wird bei diesem Songs mit dem Fuß wippen, mit dem Kopf nicken oder durch die Wohnung fegen, denn hier gibt es richtig gute handgemachte Musik aus der Rock´n´Roll-Ecke zu hören. Schon jetzt bildet das Album einen deutlichen Gegenpunkt zu der heute gebräuchlichen synthetischen Studiopampe, die einem als Musik verkauft wird.

Wiederum auf den Spuren von REM und "Crowded House" wandelt "Outtamyhead", dass insgesamt ruhiger zu Werke geht und den Schwerpunkt auf akustische Gitarren und Gesang legt und im Background neben der bekannten B3 auch gelegentlich auf Bläser setzt. Einen Gang weiter zurückgeschaltet wird bei "Tremblin´", einer Ballade, die mit einer Drumline und ansonsten dezenter Begleitung auskommt. Als außergewöhnlich kann man ruhigen Gewissens die Stimme von Anthony Bautovich bezeichnet, der als Dreh- und Angelpunkt der Forresters nicht nur alle Songs komponiert und getextet hat, sondern auch die Gitarren spielt. Nach rund drei Minuten schlägt der Song plötzlich eine Kurve ein mit einer Posaune und einer Melodiewandlung, die an das Sgt. Pepper-Album der Beatles erinnert, kommt aber gleich danach wieder auf den ursprünglichen Punkt zurück. Man sollte also nie einen Song nur anspielen, sondern bis zum Ende dabei bleiben, denn man weiss nie, was da noch aus dem (australischen) Busch kommt. Ähnlichkeiten mit den "Fab Four" hat auch "The way you do", denn das Intro weist wegen des Lapsteel-Sounds stark auf "What is love" von George Harrison hin. Ansonsten ist es ein straighter Pop-Song, der sauber ausgearbeitet ist und dem man anmerkt, dass hier nichts dem Zufall oder spontanen Eingebungen der Musiker überlassen blieb. Für eine Band, die ihre eigene Plattenfirma betreibt, ist das schon eine hervorragende Leistung, trotz der Unabhängigkeit eine auch kommerziell derart runde Leistung zu bieten.

"Wake up", Song Nr. 7 auf Skindeep, trägt seinen Namen zu Recht, denn er weckt Erinnerungen an die Rolling Stones und rockt los, als hätte Keith Richards die Saiten gequält und Charlie Watts seine Drums nicht geschont. Dass die Stimme von Anthony Bautovich allerdings mehr nach Marc Bolan von T.Rex klingt als nach Gevatter Jagger, ist durchaus verzeihenswert und vergrößert das Erinnerungsspektrum. Für die heute 40- und 50-jährigen mag es wie ein Wunder daherkommen, dass junge Leute von der anderen Seite unseres Planeten in der Lage sind, den Stil und das Feeling längst vergangener Zeiten so lupenrein rüberzubringen und als zeitgemäßes Liedgut zu verkaufen. Ein musikalischer Hauch von Jurassic Park?

Als Antwort scheinen sich Don und Phil Everly das Mikrofon gegriffen zu haben, denn Harmonie pur strömt aus den Speakern. "Don´t leave me down" ist ein ruhiger Titel, wiederum mit straighter Drumline und dem geschickt arrangierten Background, der dieses Album auszeichnet. "What you want" wird durch die Akustikgitarre geprägt, die in Zusammenarbeit mit Bautovich´s Gesang an die Songwriter-Szene der 70er und ganz besonders an James Taylor erinnert. Der Titelsong dieses Albums, "Skindeep", schwimmt stilistisch in der Nähe von Crowded House und REM, obwohl man den Forresters absolut keine Stilkopie vorwerfen kann. Dafür sind ihre Songs viel zu eigenständig. Als Bonustrack wird dieser Song auch im "Fademaster Mix" als # 13 in leicht geänderter Version angeboten und kommt dabei mit weniger Instrumentaleinsatz aus, was den Harmoniefaktor wiederum erhöht. Die Kunst des Weglassens führt auch hier zum Erfolg.

Bei "Rescue me" geben die E-Gitarren und Drums wieder den Ton an und lassen noch einmal ein paar Stones-Riffs erklingen. Hier wird reinen Rock´n´Roll angeboten, der schon mal mit einem fetten Saxophon und einem rotzigen Gitarrensolo garniert wird. Die relativ einfach gestrickte Gesangs-Line lädt zum Mitsingen ein und bringt so die Stimmbänder ins Schwingen, was der restliche Körper schon seit Beginn des Liedes getan haben dürfte, denn auch hier sind nur Gehörlose davor gefeit, dass der Rhythmus direkt von ihrem Körper Besitz ergreift. "God willing" bringt zum wiederholten Male das hohe Harmoniefeeling der Band zum Vorschein und lebt vom komplett gestalteten Background, der alles hat, was der Song braucht, aber nicht so viel, dass der Stimme von Bautovich der Raum ausgeht.

Fazit:

Schön, dass es solche Musiker und solche Musik noch gibt. Schön, dass heutzutage noch so harmonisch und gradlinig Musik gemacht wird, und man muss zu dem Schluss kommen, dass die Forresters wohl die Stars sind, die man aus Australien herausholen und der Welt vorstellen sollte. Dafür hätte man gerne Kübelböck & Co zum Tausch angeboten (doch wer hätte die genommen?).

Anthony Bautovich und seine Kollegen haben uns mit Skindeep ein Album vorgelegt, an dem es wohl nicht zu meckern gibt, denn es enthält flotten Gitarren-Pop, rockt wie die Stones und lässt bei den Balladen träumen. Besonders ins Auge bzw. Ohr fällt dabei, dass keine Musiker durch einen Computer ersetzt wurde und alles offen und original klingt. Die Spielfreude und Präzision der Musiker spricht hierbei für sich.

Traurig mag es stimmen, wenn man bedenkt, dass derart vielseitigen und begabten Musikern eventuell der große Durchbruch vorenthalten bleibt, weil sie keinem Major-Label angeschlossen sind und ihre Musik selbst vermarkten müssen. Aber vielleicht schützt dies auch davor durch die Pop-Mühlen gedreht zu werden und seine musikalische Seele zu verlieren. Dass die Forresters noch im Vollbesitz dieser Seele sind, hat das Album Skindeep gezeigt, das - wie der Name schon sagt - durchaus unter die Haut gehen kann.

19/20 - Lothar Heising
Musikansich - (Germany)

'ALBUM OF THE WEEK'

When we heard their 4 track promo, we embarrassed ourselves (again) describing it as 'Gusset drippingly good'. But now their debut album has arrived, and it's used up another box of man sized tissues.

However, whereas the eepee fitted firmly in an alt-country pigeonhole, the full album is much more expansive in it's influences, encompassing the 80's California sound as well as power pop.

There are some fabulous arrangements, delicately placed, including strings and dobro.

In fact, the opener, 'Are You Ready', is pure power pop, combining Rickenbacker jangle and fabulous harmonies, before the infectious 'Outtamyhead' brings us back into the California sound.

'Tremblin' is a finely crafted song straight out of the Flying Burritos songbook, whereas 'Wake Up' goes for the Exile on Main Street aproach to rock and roll & 'Rescue Me' heads into swamp rock mode, full on Fogerty.

'Skindeep' is a fabulous album, dripping in classic influences, but always looking forward in an attempt to search out new territories.

You need to own this!

Zietgeist - (UK)

Neben Musik aus Norwegen und Deutschland gefallen mir seit jeher auch recht viele Künstler aus Australien.
Und ich meine hier nicht unbedingt MEN AT WORK, MIDNIGHT OIL, INXS oder KYLIE MINOGUE. Dann schon eher BIRTHDAY PARTY, THESE IMMORTAL SOULS, ONCE UPON A TIME, NICK CAVE, HUNTERS AND COLLECTORS, die BEASTS OF BORBON, THE SAINTS, COSMIC PSYCHOES oder THE NEW CHRISTS. Also mehr die rotzig bluesige Wave'n'Punk-Variante kompromißlos-gitarrenorientierter Musik aus Aussieland.
Und dann kam THE FORRESTERS' "skindeep" in unser Headquarter geflogen. Im Internet wurde Anthony Bautovich von Tom Thumb Records im fernen Surry Hills auf uns aufmerksam und schickte diesen selbstproduzierten Erstling zu. Und nachdem die Silberscheibe nun schon mehrere Ehrenrunden in meinem CD-Player gedreht hat, muss ich sagen: Sehr gut gemacht und besten Dank dafür.
Der komplett unabhängig produzierte Tonträger bietet neben exaltiertem Gitarrenpop à la TEENAGE FANCLUB vor allem auch Countryinspirationen (von den JAYHAWKS bis NEIL YOUNG). Und ebenfalls einige Oldie-Markierungen, die mich an THE BYRDS oder gar an die STONES denken lassen sind auszumachen.
Aber egal, welche musikalische Richtung die Künstler auf "skindeep" einschlagen, gemeinsam ist allen Songs ein kräftiger bluesiger Grundton und der Geist von kooperativer Erarbeitung. Für hohe Qualität stehen eben alle Beteiligten zusammen, die sich bereits allesamt bei anderen Hinten-Unten-Kapellen von EVA TROUT bis KNIEVEL und THE NEW CHRISTS betätigten.
Hier sehen wir wieder einmal: Solidarität macht stark.
THE FORRESTERS legen jedenfalls ein ganz starkes Debüt vor: Ehrlich, gerade heraus und warm. Danke Anthony Bautovich, danke noch einmal für diese CD.

Andy Gehling - Radio 19-4 (Germany)

…..like to be in the running to win yourself a Forresters or Tom Thumb Records t-shirt? All you need to do is translate one of the reviews above. That right, if you're fluent in German, French, Norweigian, Italian, Dutch, Belgian or Spanish you could be in the running to win yourself one of our t's. All you need to do is send us the English translation of one of the review for your chance to win. (BTW, as we're not really sure what the reviewers are actually saying about the record, we're more likely to choose the translations that are the most complimentary)....best of luck!

TOP