The Pack A.D.: Two Rugged Cowgirls Make Their Mark on Rock-n-Roll
The Pack A.D. – Tintype
Mint Records, 2007
The Pack A.D. is a duo from British Columbia championing the old-skool sound. Each track on their 2007 release Tintype, on Vancouver’s Mint Records, is a blast of raw emotion and minimalist technique.
Maya Miller and Becky Black, drums and guitar/vocals respectively, have managed to bring together a unique vision for the tried-and-true duo-rock approach (White Stripes, Black Keys, The Shotgun). They keep it simple and maintain a blues ethos that could be traced straight back to the likes of Robert Johnson by way of Howlin Wolf, Etta James, Tammy Wynette, and Chan Marshall.
Tintype is a tribute to the history of the blues and rock & roll. A snapshot of influences merged together to make a record that would have seemingly fit right in during the late forties in the Mississippi delta.
The reverb and sludge soaked guitar on songs like “Gold Rush” sound as if they were tuned by old Scratch his’self. The dark raspy vocals are tinged with passion and pain over trying to make it after earning her weeks’ worth when she cries out “Gonna get a one room shack / somethin’ the
hell away from here / gonna’ sit on the floor with my gold, baby / and rid my life of all fear.”
Maya and Becky
The sound of each song conjures up 50’s style rock albums thrown together with wicked slide guitar, all the while capturing the atmosphere of an old saloon; the musicians on stage and a pint of Jack by their sides. Cowboys come and go, but these ladies are out to make their mark on Rock ‘n Roll. – (7/10)
The Pack A.D. play Seattle’s Comet Tavern on May 8 with Gravelroad before heading out on their first European tour.