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| Popmatters |
 It’s generally accepted that one would be ill-advised to change horses in midstream, whether it’s for fear of slowing the crossing or losing the rider. In the case of Ben Kweller’s swapping steeds on his latest release, it’s clear that he is in absolutely no danger of drowning. Kweller explains Changing Horses by saying “After the Beatles and before Nirvana, country music was the soundtrack of my life, the music that shaped who I am… this album focuses in on that one side of me.” And while it does wear the requisite Austin outlaw country accoutrements—the entire album is awash in shimmering pedal steel, for instance—it’s less about musical styles than it is about making stories come to life. Kweller has always had a knack for creating effortless melodies and perfect hooks, and even in country mode, he manages to conjure that charmingly off the cuff exuberance evocative of earlier masters of song craft, such as Randy Newman, Harry Nilsson, and, of course, the Beatles. Only this time out, those qualities are filtered through sounds reminiscent of people like Gram Parsons, and distilled into something that is still entirely Ben Kweller....full text |
| Avclub |
| Changing Horses B by Vadim Rizov February 3, 2009 Changing Horses is serious about its title: Pop songsmith Ben Kweller has gone country, and it's the best fit he's found. "Gypsy Rose" kicks off Kweller's fourth album with a slide guitar, and—the string-based "Ballad Of Wendy Baker" aside—the disc sticks to that sound. Kweller isn't trying to be Waylon Jennings, though: "Sawdust Man" finds him wailing and shredding his voice a little, but Changing Horses is mostly sedate without being boring. It helps that he isn't shooting for lyrical authenticity: "Wantin' Her Again" is just Kweller pining over a California girl the same way he always has, while "Things I Like To Do" has him geeking out over listening to music on his tour bus, and casually mentioning trips to Paris. Kweller still doesn't know when to shut up sometimes—"Things" ends with the sickly sweet line "most of all I like liking you"—but he's assembled a fine band and finally found a consistently productive groove....full text |
| Allmusic |
| After flirting with country music throughout his solo career, Ben Kweller embraces his Texas roots with Changing Horses, an earthy record filled with pedal steel guitars and honky tonk storytelling. Kweller's southern pedigree has always made itself known -- in the twang of his acoustic guitar, in the lilt of his voice -- but Changing Horses shines a spotlight on those nuances, replacing the heartland rock & roll of his past albums with a healthy dose of Americana. This is saloon-styled songwriting, complete with flashes of close harmony and images of Greyhound stations, starry skies, and homebound highways. Kweller sounds confident throughout, playing the rustic raconteur like a twentysomething Leon Russell, but the album's secret weapon is newcomer Kitt Kitterman, whose pedal steel riffs and Dobro arpeggios lend some authenticity to Kweller's southern state of mind. Nowhere is that mentality clearer than in the barroom gospel of "Fight," a three-minute credo of carpe diem ethics and multi-part harmonies. Meanwhile, "Sawdust Man" strikes a balance between bouncing Beatles pop and loose, half-drunk folk-rock, while "Things I Like to Do" spins a simple love song narrative with relaxed wit. For those perennial fans who wished Kweller had turned songs like "Lizzy" into swampy Nashville ballads, Changing Horses marks a defining moment in the songwriter's career, offering up a batch of pastiche-free country music that, like Ryan Adams' Jacksonville City Nights, may be a promising sign of what's to come....full text |
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