16 Horsepower
This Denver, Colarado, USA-based trio's brooding, god-fearingly religious songs are reminiscent of the gothic tones of Nick Cave and Gun Club. Vocalist and lyricist David Eugene Edwards sings his tales of sin and redemption against a stripped down but powerful acoustic backdrop. The grandson of a travelling Nazarene preacher and a committed Christian, Edwards grew up listening to Old Testament tales of damnation and hellfire, and formed 16 Horsepower in 1992 to explore his fascination with these religious demons. He had previously played with the Denver Gentlemen, before a chance meeting with Jean-Yves Tola, drummer with exiled French alternative rockers Passion Fodder, and his bandmate Pascal Humbert, led to the birth of 16 Horsepower. Briefly based in Los Angeles, California, Humbert left the band when Edwards and Tola returned to Denver, and was replaced by double bass player Keven Soll. After two singles on the Richochet label the band signed a deal with A&M Records. Their breakthrough Haw EP was released in November 1995, the title track a doom-laden blues characteristic of Edwards' apocalyptic obsessions. The acclaimed debut Sackcloth 'N' Ashes was originally released in America in February 1996. The album featured the fiddle-playing of Edwards' soulmate, Gordon Gano of the Violent Femmes, which, alongside the band's deliberately old-fashioned instrumentation (bandonion, banjos, double bass, accordions), reinforced the archaic nature of Edwards' lyrics. The album was released in the UK in 1997 with "Haw" added to the track listing, as the band toured their powerful live show around Europe and America.
Listen to 16 Horsepower
at Finetune.
Albums
- (1998) Low Estate
- (1996) Sackcloth 'N' Ashes
- (1995) 16 Horsepower
Top Tracks
- Black Soul Choir
- Coal Black Horses
- Brimstone Rock
- Haw
- I Seen What I Saw
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