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“Arizona rocker Dave Insley has a deadpan, baritone delivery that calls to mind both Tom Leach and the sardonic John Doe. But his spartan, acoustic instrumentation and wry way with words add a certain twangst to the proceedings on both the honky tonk paean, ‘Gilded Cage,’ and the more introspective ‘My Living Will’ and ‘I Cashed in My Old Life’ on Insley's
'Halo 4 Satan'. The number that sticks to your ribs, colon and esophagus (and not necessarily in that order), however, is ‘The Great Strip Mall Donut Shop Robbery,’ a bear claw-in-cheek tale of a West Texas-obsessed outlaw whose love of Ray Price and jelly-filled concoctions causes him to commit this truly ‘crueler cruller caper.’ Now that's the kinda song I wish I could have written (or at least eaten).”
- Kevin Roe, Rootin’ Around,
November 1998 |
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"Dave Insley is an energetic, rolling ball of talent, with a warm, welcoming attitude and chipper way of delivering some of the most intelligent, serious, and sometimes deeply moving lyrics I've ever heard. His songs are passionate, funny, wry, ironic, touching; he mixes and mingles traditional roots sounds with modern thoughts and his own sharp ideas for a sound that's fresh and thoroughly delightful."
- Kathy Coleman,
Raf's Real Country, October 2004 |
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“Dave Insley, formerly of Chaingang, is woodshedding in Flagstaff with a new band called
Politics or Pontiacs. The jocular Insley, author of former Valley favorites like ‘I’m an American, fer Christ’s sakes’ has a new recording out that highlights his dominant qualities: wry humor, crackerjack guitar work and a severely limited attention span. The self titled cassette follows Insley through two
Chaingang incarnations and also includes demos from his present band. The hodgepodge of originals ranges from ‘Mexican Love Song’ sung in well-intentioned Spanish, to a loping western ballad that the Sons of the Pioneers might have recorded. Throw in a pair of Captain Beefheart/Jeff Beck-influenced instrumentals and a Charlie Daniels cop called ‘Child of God’ and you’ve got an oddball assortment that reflects Insley’s knack for crafting solid, if stylistically schizophrenic, tunes. With a little discipline, the man and his Pontiacs could be dangerous.”
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Andy Van De
Voorde, New Times, January 6th 1988 |
