Spin Factor
By: Reviews by Ron Wynn/Nashville City Paper
Posted: Friday, October 24, 2008 12:00 am

Rick Berlin
Old Stag
(Hi-N-Dry)

Singer/songwriter Rick Berlin has spent more than three and a half decades making quirky, extremely individualistic recordings and distinguishing himself on Boston’s rock scene as a thoughtful, often provocative lyricist and edgy vocalist.
Berlin’s newest release includes several songs that will simultaneously make you think and laugh like “John Lennon’s Nose,” “Happy Lesbians in the Snow” and “Your Light is On,” plus some others with a stirring message, particularly “How Can I Hate People I Don’t Know.”
Rather than simply frame his arrangements with standard rock backing, he juxtaposes a string quartet against piano phrases, with his vocals adding a jarring, combative or sometimes just wry undertone.
You could call Old Stag alternative rock with a folkie tinge, or even orchestrated Americana, but it’s certainly both stylistically different and very refreshing.