Line #49 Music/SixteenHorsepower


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/16hp.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350: Ca. 2002.]]
3
4	->''Come and sing us down,\
5	give our conscience a poundin'.\
6	Come an' shake our ground, Lord,\
7	with the sound of Heaven's houndin'.''
8	-->--"Clogger"
9
10	Picture in your mind: In some forsaken corner of the American West, under a sky black with storm clouds, a man rides across the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. He has a gun on his hip and a Bible in his saddlebag. He's pushing his horse to its absolute limit, but it's not clear why he's in such a hurry -- whether he's the pursuer or the pursued, fleeing the law or {{God}} himself.
11
12	That, in a nutshell, is what 16 Horsepower sounds like: GothicCountryMusic, with influences from bluegrass, European folk, and {{alternative country}}. The band played once in 1992 in UsefulNotes/LosAngeles, then reformed in UsefulNotes/{{Denver}}, Colorado. Throughout the '90s, they made a name for themselves in the Denver music scene and in Europe, with music ranging from haunting to apocalyptic, and lyrics focusing on the fear of God, wrongdoing, and redemption. In the '00s, they began drifting apart and focusing on side projects; in 2005, they officially disbanded.
13
14	Post break-up, David Eugene Edwards focused on his musical project Music/WovenHand (which has become a SpiritualSuccessor to 16HP). Pascal Humbert started the band ''Lilium'' with help from Jean-Yves Tola, then Pascal joined ''Woven Hand'' in 2007.
15
16	The roster was somewhat fluid, but the core members were:
17
18	[[index]]
19	* David Eugene Edwards: Lead vocals, guitar, banjo, Chemnitzer concertina and / or bandoneon, hurdy-gurdy, lap steel guitar
20	* Jean-Yves Tola: Drums, vocals
21	* Pascal Humbert: Bass, guitar, vocals
22	[[/index]]
23	----
24
25	!! Albums:
26
27	* ''16 Horsepower EP'' (1995)
28	* ''Sackcloth 'n' Ashes'' (1996)
29	* ''Low Estate'' (1997)
30	* ''Secret South'' (2000)
31	* ''Hoarse'' (2000): A live album.
32	* ''Folklore'' (2002)
33	* ''Olden'' (2003): A compilation of the band's early demos.
34	* ''Live March 2001'' (2008): [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Another live album.]]
35	----
36
37	!! Provides examples of:
38
39	* AlbumTitleDrop: On ''Secret South.''
40	* BawdySong: "Ruthie Lingle" and "Hang My Teeth on Your Door." Incidentally the latter is one of the few 16HP songs not penned by DEE.
41	* ChristianRock: They basically call into question the entire practice of labeling bands by ideology. To wit: David Eugene Edwards, the primary songwriter, is a devout Christian, and this comes across very clearly in his lyrics. None of the other band members share his beliefs. Since they never sought out the "Christian music" distribution channels, their music could not be found in Christian music stores -- yet 16HP's music was more explicitly Christian themed than just about anything that could be found in the Christian stores.
42	* CoverAlbum: ''Folklore'' only had two original songs. The rest of the tracks are covers of Music/HankWilliams, the ''Carter Family,'' and various traditional songs. (American, French, Hungarian, Tuvan, etc.)
43	* TheCoverChangesTheMeaning: Their version of "[[Music/CreedenceClearwaterRevival Bad Moon Rising.]]"
44	* DroneOfDread: When Edwards breaks out his squeezebox, the song will either be even more ominous than 16HP's usual fare, [[InvertedTrope or it will be the most upbeat song on the entire album.]]
45	* FrenchAccordion: When they covered a traditional French song, "La Robe a Parasol", their guitarist played Chemnitzer concertina (an instrument related to the accordion) instead of guitar. As a whole, the song is [[LighterAndSofter much more upbeat than the band's usual fare]].
46	* GoodIsNotNice: DEE's lyrics hew very close to Literature/TheBible, so God is portrayed as both supremely good and (per fan consensus) scary as hell.
47	* PrecisionFStrike: DEE says "fucking" twice on ''Sackcloth 'n' Ashes,'' and nowhere else.
48	* ReviewerStockPhrases: Did you know that David Eugene Edwards is the grandson of a fire and brimstone Nazarene preacher? Good luck finding a 16HP album review that doesn't bring it up.
49	* SopranoAndGravel: DEE and Pascal Humbert harmonize to this effect on a few songs from ''Low Estate.''
50	* SpotlightStealingSquad: David Eugene Edwards. A Netherlands TV documentary, ostensibly about the band, focused on DEE's home life and never gave the other members a single chance to speak.
51	* WordSaladLyrics: Some songs on the early albums come across rather stream of consciousness, where individual verses may make perfect sense, but don't follow at all from the rest of the song.

Context Music / SixteenHorsepower