This is one of those records...yeah, I still say record, because it reminds me of the days when I first discovered rock music. The thrill I used to get listening to music that spoke to me and in my mind was 'made for me'. Yeah, maybe part the whole thing was that I knew I wouldn't find my New York Doll's LP in my parents collection...not it in a million years. 
But over the years something began to change. The recording techniques got better... the labels started to bring in executives to give their opinions regarding the direction of the bands... maybe it was the damn hair products...I don't f#^*kn' know...but before we knew it, the public was creating the music and this is NOT how it is supposed to be-
I can tell you how it should be. A bunch of guys get together when they are young and play day and night-Guy plays in band-gets local following-makes the record the with the band and doesn't take any crap from anyone about how to make the music sell better or look better...and if he is still interested and has something to say after the years of failure, disappointment and being screwed with...then you have a rock and roll record worth listening to...and Valdez obviously does...and it's real and gritty and true!
During the worst financial meltdown America has seen since 1929 he takes all of his talent, experience, and disgust for the establishment and drops 9 songs on a small cheap 8 track recorder...The angry, hard edged anti-establishment rock and roll is alive and well and still with us!. Two thumbs up for Valdez and "The family room tapes". This is what the music industry and America needs right now and anyone that doesn't agree can go F@#*K themselves...RIGHT NOW!
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This is as back to old school as you can get, it reminds me of High school, when someone would come up to me in the hallway and hand me a home made tape of their band. here we have all the things we loved about those homemade tapes, the xerox cover picture, the hand written liner notes etc..
Now to the music.. I was familiar with Jose's old band Who KIlled Bambi? who I liked very much because they weren't your typical punk band(I heard them record a punk "ballad" years before greenday' time of your life).
After listening to Exfiled on W Main st(love the twist on the stones classic lp), I realize that jose was not only one of the main songwriters, but the one who frequently took WKB off their punk rock road with great musical results, here he goes back to his roots(this is not a Who Killed bambi cd!!)
you hear his influences loud and clear..stones,cooper,replacements,early 80's new wave,post punk, blues,RnB and country...yes even country(lyrically all still with that cynical punk outlook on life,).
the highlights-
Middle- great  westerbergish garage rock anthem. Runaway-gloomy yet hopeful song asking "what happened"?, On n On -could have been on exiled on main st by the stones, Forgotten(made me cry) as good as any ballad alice cooper ever sang, Prettiest- country twang,but very cool and funny. America- early 80's new wave with lyrics that will keep you up at night.
Jose handles  all the vocals, guitars and bass which in it self is impressive, lyrics are straight from the heart, and his guitar playing simple yet effective.
this cd has not come out of my player since I got it, Highly recomended !!!
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this cd hearkens back to the days of bands putting out their own cassette with a hand written cover made on the xerox machine. the whole thing feels hand made, and that type of intimacy with an artist is rare in this age of music being reduced to a computer file. I mean, I have an mp3 player, sure, it's handy. but this method of obtaining music is about as impersonal as you can get. so the cd version of this is welcome for the personal feel of the packaging to start with. 
the hand made aesthetic doesn't stop there, either. songs end abruptly, there are occasional gaps between tracks, and it really does sound like something made by an artist just for you alone to enjoy, it's very personal. 
Jose Valdez has put together a selection of songs he wrote and recorded all by himself in his living room. think "Nebraska" but as a pissed off punk rock record with drums and bass and loud guitars. if you're looking for slick "product" then look elsewhere. this is as real and honest as it gets. 
this guy loves rock'n'roll and that love fairly bleeds all over this disc. his influences are all present and accounted for: Stones, Thunders, Westerberg, Jesus & Mary Chain, Tyla & Dogs D'Amour, you get the idea. dirty, blues infused, snarling, rock'n'roll. low-fi, stripped down, not a speck of pretension here. 
subject wise, you're looking through the eyes of a man who has spent the better part of his life in service to the church of rock'n'roll. the observations here are cynical, angry, joyful, resigned, all the honest feelings that come from the lessons learned as a veteran guitar slinger of nigh on 30 years. 
by the way, I'd be slacking here if I didn't mention that Jose is quite a guitar player. this disc is full of tasty treats courtesy of a big sexy Gretsch hollow body, and the six string work is worth the price of admission alone. 
if you want to experience an intimate look at the workings of a genuine rock'n'roll lifer at his craft, this is for you.
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