The Other Ones (Rock): The Strange Remain : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

OK, so they're not the Grateful Dead, but cut the Other Ones some slack: On last summer's Furthur Festival, this Dead-alumni tribute band did a fine job of kicking life into a seriously played-out repertoire by adding just enough new twists to keep things interesting. On this double-CD set, the band shows off its tight interplay. Guitarist Steve Kimocks' slippery-necked leads capture the feel, if not the fire, of Jerry Garcia's playing, and drummer John Molo provides the kind of sturdy, in-the-pocket grooves that the Dead frequently lacked. As for those new twists, they're mainly a vocal thing: Without Garcia's singular craggy croon, vocalists Bob Weir, Phil Lesh and Bruce Hornsby reinvent songs that have borne the late guitarist's imprint for decades. Not everything clicks: Phil Lesh's vocal stab at "Mountains of the Moon" is touch-and-go, and there's a fair share of loose-limbed meandering. Still, on The Strange Remain, the Other Ones provide plenty of reasons for loyalists to hold out hope for yet another tour. (RS 807)

MARC WEINGARTEN