The Hope Trust is the project of Kelly Upshaw, a singer-songwriter from Denton, Texas. Along with Andy Odom (bass), Winston Chapman (drums), Jeremy Butler (guitar) and Michael Upshaw (guitars, vocals) they have a sweet Americana sound similar to The Pernice Brothers earlier efforts and Wilco. After the rollicking “Break You Down” and very Pernice-like “Run It Through” it settles into an indie folk groove, with “Ok Alright” complete with wistful choruses similar to Neil Finn. The musicanship is superb and the production is clean here as well. If you like your alt-country with a bit of melodic melancholy, this is the perfect poison for you. On the other side of the coin, there may be too much gloom here with tracks like “Repent”, “World Without End” and “Mountain I Can’t Climb” – it’s enough to drive a man to drink. The lack of any upbeat songs after the opening tracks is a real downer here. Good job, Hope Trust. After hearing this I have an “incurable want” for some Jack Daniels with Gary Louris. Depressed Alt country lovers unite!
Hope Trust site | My Space | CD Baby | Itunes