I’ve been to Arizona once. It was in late July, and it was hotter and drier than any other place I’ve been in my life. It felt like the top racks of ovens. It felt like the air around high-wattage light bulbs. At night, it was still hot, and when it rained, the rain was also hot. It was a hot hot place. Absurdly hot, I’d even say.

However, the band French Quarter does not evoke these images or feelings. Centered around the singing and songwriting of Tempe, Arizona native Stephen Steinbrink, French Quarter instead conjures the image of a road-wizened kid ambling through the nooks and crannies of our country, speeding down highways in beat up cars with only his thoughts to keep him company, a constant cycle of images of home, smells, troubadours of yesteryear and past loves. That’s how I’d like to think of Stephen, anyway, but I’ve never met him.

French Quarter’s self-titled LP (released on Gilgongo Records in 2007) is a strong and wonderful record, ten solid tracks of expressing the gamut of thoughts and emotions of 19 year old Steinbrink (whose lyrics embody a level of self-awareness and articulation that seems way beyond most people of this age). The last track, “Build Fires,” is definitely my favorite and an excellent cap to the record.

Backed by a fairly mellow instrumentation of acoustic guitar, bass, and drums, “Build Fires” is a catchy laid-back jam, evoking cool breezes coupled with the pleasant warmth of a summer sun (the antithesis of my Arizona experience, I believe.) Steinbrink coos simple, beautiful lyrics, and harmonizes pleasantly with himself (which is a hard feat to pull off successfully) during the refrain. “Build Fires” is a wonderful track off an impressive debut LP, and I’m definitely excited to hear French Quarter’s future offerings.

French Quarter is currently on tour, check out the myspace for info.

French Quarter - “Build Fires”