Dead Fingers Alive at Heart

Birmingham, Alabama married couple and songwriting duo Kate Taylor and Taylor Hollingsworth’s second album as Dead Fingers is a joyous romp through wide-open fields, barn dances and campfires. Seemingly stripped of any studio effects, Big Black Dog has a close, authentic feel that relies on the talents of its performers. They’ll sound just as good live as they do on the album.

Taylor and Hollingsworth sing together on most of the album and attempt no fancy harmonies, but rather shadow each other. Taylor’s voice is sweet where Hollingsworth can be nasal, but they blend well together. Songs that feature Taylor on lead vocal are particularly heartfelt and showcase her lyrical storytelling ability. On “Pomp & Circumstance,” a touching acoustic ballad, she accepts responsibility for her part in ending a relationship, and later finds herself the jilted one in “Feet Back on the Ground.” These thoughtful, midtempo tracks pass by gently; the former on a woven pattern plucked on an acoustic guitar, the latter on a doo-wop beat.

Their folk side runs rampant on the “The Races,” a song the duo seems much too young to sing as it tells the tale of a man staying relevant despite his advanced age. The bounce and handclaps of “Twisted” and the speed-polka of “Holy Water” give the album a dose of Southern edginess.

Given the varied influences heard on Big Black Dog, Dead Fingers never spends too much time on one sound or another, ever eager to mix in these closely tied genres. Throughout the album, hints of John Denver, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, the McGarrigle sisters and more can be heard, but they all come through the filter of Taylor and Hollingsworth to make the songs uniquely their own.