New Train

Paul Pena eventually became known as an unlikely virtuoso of Tuvan throat singing, especially after he was profiled in the documentary Genghis Blues. Yet in his prior musical lifetime, before literally finding a new voice, he was a soul-blues-rocker who managed to issue one self-titled LP in the early '70s. Paul Pena is a respectable album in that style, but it's a fairly ordinary journeyman effort, albeit without serious flaws. There's a little bit of an early-'70s folky singer/songwriter looseness a la Van Morrison involved as well, though occasionally he gets into a funky groove that was more explicitly Southern soul-influenced. Only "One for the Lonely" comes close to getting a really hooky blues-rock riff into the mix, however. Some of the other tracks have some modest pleasures as well, like the expansive organ of "Something to Make You Happy," which gives the brooding number a San Francisco acid rock tinge. The folk-bluesy "Lullaby" is another of the stronger tracks, with its galloping going-down-the-road feel and unexpected addition of steel guitar (by Jeff Baxter) and harp. ~ Richie Unterberger