Given the present musical climate, and interest that Weeping Tile's singer/guitarist and songwriter Sarah Harmer has shown in the past for the likes of Neil Young and Jeff Tweedy, I wouldn't have been surprised if Weeping Tile, for their second full-length effort, lurched into insurgent country territory. Instead, Valentino continues in essentially the same direction as 1995's uneven, but great Cold Snap it's a well-structured, beautiful collection of Harmer's roots-rock musings. Her first person explorations touch deep while her beautiful voice soars over the band, including new bassist Stinky (who also provides some vocals). Musically, Weeping Tile is grooving in the place so many great jamming bands want to be in for a record, sounding somewhere between rehearsed and sloppy, loose but purposeful. Valentino starts strong, with "South of Me," and with the exception of a few interesting, but not necessarily essential acoustic side roads, gets better as the band seems to warm up to the task. By the time they hit "Can't Get Off," a seemingly ready-made radio hit, all cylinders are firing, and Weeping Tile reveals what they have always been, deep down inside: a crackin' rock band.
