State Cows - High And Dry (2022)

European import

I like State Cows. That said, all their stuff is in exactly the same vein. However, I happen to like that vein, so here we are. Speaking of the same vein, I’ll now engage in some tasteful plagiarism from a previous CDP post about the band.

Here's a little bit about the Swedish duo, taken from their website:

STATE COWS is one of very few modern yacht rock / westcoast / AOR bands that creates new original music. This project started out as a Steely Dan tribute called THE SECOND ARRANGEMENT. They soon transformed the Steely Dan tribute into the band STATE COWS and started writing an album of brand new yacht rock songs. Smooth guitar lines, half-time shuffles, funky bass lines, slick harmonies, real Fender Rhodes, tight horn sections and some California sunshine ... it's all in there!

So, yeah, it's derivative, but so very good and very smooth. Goes down easy. If you tire of the limited and questionable playlist on the yacht rock channel on SiriusXM, but still want a little Doobie Bounce in your life, this is just what the doctor ordered. The duo leans into the "yacht rock" nomenclature and musical vocabulary while creating neo-yacht music for the dad rock (or granddad rock) crowd. My only complaint is the sound is often over-produced, particularly in the odd treatment of the backing vocals.

I encourage you to sample some their stuff over at bandcamp: statecows.bandcamp.com.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: The best cuts on this one are Caught In A Landslide, Emily, Tears Of Isolation, Hold On, and When You Smile.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None, but the sound sure takes me back to the '80s real quick.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Closed Doors And Open Shores (2025)