:: Pete Ross and the Paesanos - Six String Suicide

Pete Ross and the Paesanos

Six String Suicide by Pete Ross and the Paesanos is like many an album before it, a journey in search of life’s meaning. Australian born Pete Ross (also known as Peter Cicciari of the band Dan Brodie and the Broken Arrows) retraces his roots back to Southern Italy in an effort to find his true soul. The result? An extremely personal album with a melancholic country feel. When the opening single ‘Kiss Goodnight’ kicks into gear the first thing that pops into your head is Neil Diamond. The folksy country melody in this song is the perfect compliment to Ross’ crooning vocals, which are very similar to those of the legendary American hit maker. ‘Daddy’s Song’ continues the family feel infused throughout Six String Suicide. A bluesy ditty about memories and love, ‘daddy’s song’ has some great harmonica lines and guitar riffs that really show off Ross’ storytelling skills. But perhaps that standout tracks on Six String Suicide are those Ross performs in Italian. Ross and the Paesanos’ claim to fame in Europe, these tracks have not only won the band thousands of diehard Italian fans, who find his Australianness curious, but also earned him a place in the 2008 finals of the Tamworth Music Festival for Aristocrat Country Entertainer of the Year. ‘Scuri Scuri’ is one of these tracks and it’s an absolute cracker. A traditional Sicilian folk song, it has everything you’d expect from a tune that has been around for decades: the fantastically daggy accordion, the mandolin, the lyrics you can’t understand, and the bells, because no folk song is complete without bells. Six String Suicide is your typical country rock album with all the moping and longing Bob Dylan made famous. The tracks are well-crafted, the lyrics thoughtful and Ross’ vocals rich and coarse. The only difference is that you get a few great songs in Italian, which not only make for a welcome change but also showcase why Pete Ross and the Paesano’s are more famous outside Australia than inside.