09.28.06 Americana-UK STEPHEN SIMMONS | Drink Ring Jesus Sit on any rocky outcrop in winter, stare out to sea into the prevailing wind, be stoic, be unmoved by the tangy freezing salt spray, be King Canute, do this and express it through folk music - you’ve just discovered Stephen Simmons. It is the sort of folk music that is unchanging, an acoustic guitar and something to say: think of Steve Earle. For Simmons it is the attempt to reconcile a strict Christian upbringing with the contemporary world, so we get fire and brimstone, spirituality and stylistic purity. Some of the songs come across with the cold-heartedness of a true believer and as they unfold at much the same pace throughout, if you don’t share the fascination with the religious iconography then it is difficult to get through - it seems humourless - there is no joy except that of salvation, the biggest lie. I know I don’t want to be saved and I hope that it isn’t just this that makes me think that this is competent but stilted and one for the converted only. – David Cowling