Band members, Drew Peterson (vocals, guitar), BJ Haldy (guitar, banjo), Dustin Brown (drums, percussion), Mike Kylochko (mandolin) and Chris Durow (bass) have developed a raw and off-the-cuff style that draws on influences such as Tom Waits, Van Morrison, Mason Jennings and the “old dogs of country.”

Press:

“...roots rock with a little bit of grit, plenty of humor and a touch of twang”
Liz Kohman - St. Cloud Times

""Shovel's Length Short is road-trip music, drinking music, and relaxing after a good, honest day’s worth of blue-collar labor music.""
Bruce Cook - Static Magazine

“Forty Watt Bulb is both small crowd intimate and big audience worthy.
The foot-tapping strumming of Forty Watt Bulb lures you in. The whimsical lyrics that sneak in an interesting spin on reality keep you wanting more.”
Veronica Glidden - Up Magazine

“A great piece of work.”
Kyle Hollingsworth - String Cheese Incident

Shovel’s Length Short Reviews:

Shovels Length Short is a satisfying cigarette and a cold one after a hard days work on a small farm that no longer exists. In other words, in this innocuous age, songs like “Laramie,” “Tie Me Up” and “Lenore” give soft-palmed Americans a bitter but enticing taste of hard work. Without today’s flailing economy, 40 Watt Bulb’s rural rock might only give a digitized simulation of Depression-era folk music. However, as more people become underemployed, our culture embraces this band’s brand of narrative songs about blue-collar life. Still, 40 Watt Bulb wears many hats—not just a mesh seed cap or a crumpled Stetson.

The clipped and syncopated lyrics bob and weave through the swing of the guitar, banjo, mandolin and bass notes. The coarse vocals convey emotions that a jaded audience wants to experience. A few songs out of the CD’s 17 tracks, “Uncle” and “Tattoo,” miss their mark due to cliché or catchiness, and roots rock haters need not listen. But, if you want mostly acoustic, Springsteen-like narratives, you’ve found the right album.
Shari Jacobs, Ripsaw Magazine

Acoustic guitars, banjos, mandolins; small towns, front porches and coffee shops; families laughing by a barbecue or lounging near a campfire and grandparents dancing at the town square--all of these sounds and images are encompassed in 17 tracks from Forty Watt Bulb's latest release, ""Shovel's Length Short.""

Many of Forty Watt Bulb's songs would be fairly standard folk/pop/ acoustic songs if it weren't for Drew Peterson's passionate vocal delivery, which sets ""Shovel's Length Short"" above its peers.

The album covers a wide range of territory, ranging from the Cities 97-esque pop-rock of ""Uncle"" to the toe-tappin' hoedown stylings of ""Jesus Loves my Shotgun"" (where you might feel out of place not having a piece of straw hanging from your lip) all the way to track 16, ""Lenore,"" which is more of a story than simply a lyric, in which Peterson croons about a Frogtown hooker.

The disc's production and packaging are also noteworthy. Sonically, this album is flawless. The cardboard case, with a removable lyric sheet, is also a nice touch, showing that these guys have enough pride in their music to take the extra step to make sure it's presented in a unique and professional manner.
-AG, The Rift Magazine

Laramie

Folk/Acoustic Rock/Americana

Comments                                                Add new Comment   View All