Payne County Line
February 14, 2005

Dos Machos! – Sugar Free AllStars - Where does one start to review a CD such as “Dos Machos” by the Sugar Free AllStars? I honestly think one could start about anywhere, because it all rocks. The Sugar Free AllStars are Chris Wiser, keyboards, and Rob “Dr. Rock” Martin on percussion. This 10 track CD leaves ya wanting more from this duo! One quickly learns from listening to this CD that it is much more than just about the number in the band, or what they play. The songs are well crafted by word smith Chris Wiser who was born in Ada, spent time in Noble, and now calls Norman, OK. home. The lyrics are very well written, and of course, with the addition of the great vocals by Chris, the songs seem to come to life, and make you want to get up and dance. It is yet another thing to talk about the amazing talent this young artist has on the keyboards. He plays the B3 like it was a guitar, bass, sax, trumpet, you name it, and this cat can get the sound out of the keys! And then to the mix one adds the drummer Rob Martin, whose alias is Dr. Rock, and all of a sudden you have a CD full of some tremendous rock and roll. Full of energy, full of life, in almost every way! One might call this type of music funk, jazz, rock and roll, pop, southern rock, red dirt, rhythm and blues, gospel, blues; just about every name seems to apply. This is one band that almost steps up the plate and asks you to define them, if you can! The lyrics are light, deep, airy, comical, life and struggles, while at the same time being full of honest heart felt emotion, and some instrumentation that is beyond belief in some areas. And to this writer, there is not a weak sister in the mix. From the “Cover Band Boyfriend” that moves out and gets things started to the realistic, yet comical “Buddhist in a Beemer” the CD moves in and out of our minds eye, with the musical arrangement. Then comes along the almost bluesy Cornbread! Not quite, but almost! There are many tunes that makes one want to define these cats, but you just can’t do it. From a press kit that I viewed online, it says, “Imagine that Deep Purple and Sly and the Family Stone had a love child that grew up in New Orleans listening to Ray Charles, Black Sabbath and Booker T. That love child would be Sugar Free AllStars!” I will concede that to me, there is not a better description of this dynamic duo of rock! To me, if one closes their eyes, and listens to the music, and kind of drifts off, after a tune or two, opens their eyes, they will be surprised they are not in New Orleans, sitting on a curb between some rockin’ joints listening to the great sounds coming out of them! Sugar Free AllStars are a band to keep an eye on, cuz these cats are going places, and those places are at the top! If one loves Oklahoma music and artist, or finding a great band among the mix, then to add to ones CD collection “Dos Machos” is a must. This one CD shows the amazing talents and sounds that can come from Oklahoma artist at their best. And it showcases some of the vast diversity in music in this great state! 5 of 5 stars to the dynamic Norman duo – Sugar Free AllStars for their second CD – “Dos Machos”.

-Stan Moffat
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