Put on your time travel hat and enjoy a glimpse at 80s metal with Rail Vodka by Jordan Carr and the Boys.
Rail Vodka is a ballad that starts with travel, add in some fast cars, then partying with the boys on top of a bus and then pyrotechnics. Yes – you read that right – pyrotechnics. It is a welcome trip in a time machine to the 80s – no pandemic, no insurrection, no civil unrest. (Well, not much.) It’s classic and carefree.
But carefree, doesn’t mean without heartbreak. The song is clearly a memorial to a friend. The “liner notes” on YouTube spell it out…
This video is a dedication to hair metal, Karkov Vodka and the wild life of our friend, Tyler Kotewa…
The tone and the sound are perfect for the 1980s. There is an absolute charm to it, a nostalgia. It’s cathartic for anyone else who has lost a friend. It’s a reminder that back in the day we suffered personal losses; while today the pandemic, civil unrest and domestic insurgence overshadow anything personal – including graduations, weddings and funerals. It’s a reminder than someday we will look back at this time too.
Jordan told us that the video was a year and a half in the making. Car accidents, broken bones, weather, recording schedules, line-up and location changes and, eventually, Covid-19 set everything back. It demonstrates the resilience of the band and highlights the theme of resiliency and memorial in the music. I never knew Tyler – but I feel like I can picture him in the front row of the gig, singing with the band. I feel like Jordan did everything in this video that Tyler would have loved – including a few shots of Karkov – and that’s a fitting legacy!
Mostly Minnesota 