Last Charge of the Light Horse

Last Charge of the Light Horse was formed in winter of 2004. Singer/guitarist Jean-Paul Vest had just finished a second stint in Blue Sandcastle and was looking for an outlet for some new songs when longtime Raven drummer Artie Riegger called. Together with bassist A.J. Riegger they began rehearsing new material and bending Blue Sandcastle songs into new shapes. After roughly a year of rehearsals and local gigs, they finally decided it was time to head into Freeport's Vu Du Studios. With Bob Stander at the controls, the trio recorded 12 songs, released in December 2005 as Getaway Car. NEWSDAY, February 9, 2006, Rafer Guzman Straight-ahead rock doesn't find its way into this column very often, and there are a couple of reasons. Most of it just rehashes the sounds of bygone decades, and it's easy to overlook when so many young bands are experimenting with more up-to-date genres such as punk and emo. That doesn't leave much room for all the singer-songwriters and traditional-minded rock groups out there. But here's room for one: Last Charge of the Light Horse, a basic trio led by veteran singer-guitarist Jean-Paul Vest and rounded out by drummer Artie Riegger and bassist A.J Riegger (his son). The Coram-based band may have a highfalutin name, but it isn't trying to do anything fancy. Instead, it just creates and plays good music. A warning: Last Charge's latest disc, "Getaway Car," isn't upbeat. It starts out angry, with the rolling drums and powerful bass of "Cartwheeling." Vest sings bitterly: "Maybe it's coincidence/My boy fell down the stairs/The same day they dropped our jobs to boost the market share." The mood lifts on "Here We Go Again," but the downbeat lyrics contradict the jaunty melody. A few tracks in, the clouds really begin to gather. "Miracle" has an ominous drone beneath the chords; "Getaway Car" feels wind-blown and dusty. The five-minute "Au Clair" ends with a long, wordless reverie: Vest lets his guitar do the pondering while the rhythm section rustles quietly behind him. Vest's somewhat fragile voice can't quite conquer every song; he has the reedy tone of a folkie, rather than a rocker. But at other times (as on "Au Clair") this fragility serves him well. Overall, "Getaway Car" is a rare disc that creates something original out of the traditional. Copyright 2006 Newsday Inc.

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