The Ramblin Ambassadors – Avanti
(Mint)

Apparently Huevos Rancheros broke up a while back and someone forgot to tell me. Now normally I would be disappointed about such news, but Rancheros guitarist Brent Cooper has already saddled up with a new posse called The Ramblin Ambassadors. And you know what? They ain’t half bad.

Their debut album Avanti is out on Mint Records and although it is rather short, it should sound like pretty familiar territory for Huevos Rancheros fans: 9 instrumental surf rock and roll cuts with hints of country and rockabilly and a spicy mexican flavour. Moments like the explosive twang of “Hangin Tree” and the galloping cowboy tune “Hawgtied” can be easily held up alongside much of Cooper’s previous work.

This is in no way a complete musical rehash however.Bassist Scott Nickless plays stand up bass which creates a slightly different dynamic in the rhythm section. The song “Lungbucket” may be more straight ahead rock than anything Huevos Rancheros did, while “Dead Man’s Flats” incorporates some sorrowful trumpet and hammond organ. Then there is “Twenty Original Fembots”, a song penned by Cooper’s pal Brian Connelly that definitely brings to mind his own former band Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet.

The Ramblin Ambassadors are also big fans of spaghetti westerns, which they pay tribute to with a killer cover of Ennio Morricone’s “Sixty Seconds To What?”. The closing song “The Hairless Cat” also sounds like something out of The Good, The Bad And The Ugly.

The record clocks in at about 25 minutes which may seem short to some, but keep in mind that Huevos Rancheros’ own Get Outta Dodge featured only 7 songs and could arguably be called their finest work. Avanti may not quite be at that level of perfection, but it is still sure to make twang masters like Duane Eddy and Link Wray proud. — Sean