This was a difficult review to write as I've never really thought about why I like Oxbow, I just do. Musically, the band is pretty much incomparable. Oxbow integrate elements of jazz, noise rock, blues and classical music into one crazy, experimental concoction. The band's earlier work involved a lot of noisy rock jams, and they have since moved into a very orchestral and atmospheric style. But regardless of what form Oxbow seem to be focusing on, one thing does remain the same. The vocals of frontman Eugene S. Robinson are almost always incomprehensible, his singing consists of sobbing cries, tortured howls, grunts, snorts, and obscure babbling. Yet these unconventional vocals, which might sound ridiculous overtop of any other kind of music, really mix well with Oxbow's insane musical palette. I've always thought of Eugene's crazed mouth sounds as what my thoughts and emotions probably sound like before I order them into coherent sentences.
So that's Oxbow in a very small nutshell, how about this album though? Serenade in Red is the band's fourth full length LP, and unfortunately for me, it's not one of my favourites. I think of this album (and the one that precedes it, Let Me Be a Woman) as kind of transitionary albums between the pure noise rock of Fuckfest and King of the Jews (which I should clarify is good noise rock), and Oxbow's best works, An Evil Heat and The Narcotic Story.
I know I just compared Serenade to all of Oxbow's other albums, but that's because it's on this album where I first hear the formation of that level of pure awesome featured on An Evil Heat. Songs like The Last Good Time and 3 O'Clock move further away from pure noise rock towards something that is more mood-setting (and not in a sexy kind of way). The guitars on The Last Good Time plod forward in a bluesy, sludgy sort of way, while the bass guitar and rhythm of 3 O'Clock paired with Eugene's ramblings (as if he is talking to someone, perhaps in his own head) gives the sense that a story is being told. It's almost cinematic in a way, I can picture a distressed Eugene seething angrily in a dark and sleazy apartment, crying "wh-who the hell... is that man! That man you see in your sleep! What kind of company do you keep?!" These are the same elements of Oxbow's following two albums that made them so excellent in my opinion.
Sadly, these two songs are the only ones on Serenade that are memorable to me. Not that the others are bad, but the problem with having two great songs is that they kind of overshadow the rest of the album, making it sound mediocre in comparison to Oxbow's later works. Even so, this band is one that you need to listen to at some point in your life. I honestly can't compare them to anything else I've heard. Oxbow are pure originality.
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