Check out our Live Ustream event with The Mastersons! The event is scheduled to start at 2:30pm EST with a live interview and, if we are lucky, a live performance.

If you have any questions for The Mastersons, email me at eli@twangville.com or comment below.

I can only assume that one of those sirens on FM radio were The Replacements, as they seem to be the biggest new influence on Sons of Bill. Whether it’s the production of David Lowrey (Camper Van Beethoven, Cracker) or whether the band just felt like changing things up, Sirens definitely has more of jangly guitar pop feel than ‘09’s One Town Away. Regardless, it’s a pretty damn good record and should be the ‘break through’ record for the Charlottesville, VA band.

Though the band still straddles the Whiskeytown-Mike Cooley line of alternative country for the most part, the lead single “Santa Anna Winds” and the aforementioned “Siren Song” have the rock and roll attitude that draws parallels to Sons of Bill contemporaries The Gaslight Anthem. Front man James Wilson is still the principle voice on most of the tracks here and I can’t complain. While I was a big fan of songs like “Joey’s Arm” on One Town Away, I thought the album only had a couple really good songs, and the rest of the record didn’t stick with me as much. This is not true for Sirens. I honestly can’t come up with a single weak track. Not to take anything away from the younger Wilson brother, but a big part of that success is the ‘other’ singer, Abe Wilson, who provides great contrast on some Twangier numbers. However, it’s Abe’s pop side that I want to highlight next.

One of my favorite songs on the record is the 7 and half minute epic “Turn It Up.” The band channels 90’s power-pop heroes Teenage Fanclub for most of the song before briefly morphing into the Allman Brothers and then closing the song with some beautifully layered harmonies. The song is unprecedented for the band and signals that they have quite a bit of range beyond Twang and roll.

The closing “Virginia Calling” is vintage Sons of Bill, opening with the classic line “ain’t it funny how you pray for rain/ and then bitch about the rust.” Which leads me to my favorite thing about this record; the band stays the course, but expands their sound in new and fun directions. No one wants their favorite band to change, but bands can’t (and shouldn’t) keep making the same record over and over again. The trick is to do both.

RIYL: Whiskeytown, The Gaslight Anthem, The Replacements, Drive-By Truckers

Ok. Full disclosure, I am a huge Lucero fan. They are, to put it simply, my favorite band on the whole damn planet. I celebrate their entire catalog, from the lo-fi hiss of The Attic Tapes to the boisterous horns of their 2009 major label debut. So no, you probably won’t be shocked to find out that I adore Women & Work, the band’s 8th record in their 14 year run. What may shock you is that I will make one negative statement about the record: it’s not as good as 1372 Overton Park.

While some die-hard fans still decry the use of horns on the band’s first and probably only record for a major label (ATO Records is responsible for Women & Work), I loved it. Every inch of 1372 was perfect in my eyes. Even the throw-away songs were excellent. It’s the band’s best record song for song, front to back. None of which means that Women & Work is anything to sneer at.

Since the band’s beginning, Lucero has evolved a bit on every record while managing to sound more or less the same. Women & Work has many of the same hallmarks as 1372 did, horns, Rick Steff, and some classic soul ballads. These influences are a bit more seamless on this record. The horns seem to find the cracks in the songs rather than powering through the mix and Ben’s voice has never been in better form.

The band is still moving forward musically as well. Check out the rockabilly influences on “Women and Work” and “Like Lightening,” the blues romp of “Juniper,” and the gospel choir closer “Go Easy.” The band wasn’t chiding about writing a love letter to Memphis. “Go Easy” in particular was a revelation for me. Hey Ben, why don’t you bring the gospel choir on the next tour?

My favorite songs on the record, however, are classic Lucero. The opening “On My Way Downtown” is probably the best song on the record and destined to be a set list mainstay for the band’s legendary live shows. The song is about calling an old flame to (hopefully) go out drinking at the beginning of the night. “It May Be Too Late,” part two of the story, is about that person not showing up and the narrator drinking all night long. In other words, Ben Nichols at his melancholy late night best.

So you see, I really do love this record. It just doesn’t quite have the epic feel that 1372 embodied. Maybe it was the major label thing or the horns thing or the Ted Hutt (producing here again, as he did on 1372) thing, but 1372 felt and feels like Lucero’s definitive album. Women & Work is (just) a collection of badass songs by one of America’s best rock and roll bands.

Chip’s Thoughts

The more things change the more things stay the same. That isn’t to say that Lucero hasn’t evolved. Their sound has expanded with each record, as they have incorporated more and more of their influences. On Women & Work the band is paying tribute to their hometown, Memphis. That is not an observation; it is plainly stated on their website. The intentionality of accentuating the Soul sound of Memphis makes their purpose more noticeable, but in reality it is nothing new. Even in their early days, their gruff vocals and loose guitar riffs were permeated by their roots.

Gradually each successive album has progressed and expanded their sound. However, the driving angst of their early music has never been lost. It is a rare quality for a band to be able to grow and expand without losing its’ spirit. Lucero manages to do just that. While Women & Work may be their most ambitious effort so far, at the center is still the raw energy that has been the heart of every Lucero album.

I write a lot of really nice things about a lot of different bands and artists on this website. This is partly because we here at Twangville are more about sharing and shining the light on good music, rather than being merciless critics sitting on our high horses. It’s also because there are no specific assignments. No one tells me I have to review a particular band or artist; I have to WANT to. 99% of the time this means that I will actually like/love the record, artist, or subject matter of what I am writing about. This makes for some fairly adulatory and at times hyperbolic reviews. Most of the time, this presents little to no problem for me or our readers. The internet is teeming with videos, mp3s, and streaming audio. You can generally check out whatever I am yammering about and decide for yourself if the latest Ben Sollee album is really “a masterpiece” (hint: I still think it is).

The only problem is when I stumble upon a new artist who absolutely blows me away. How do I offer the proper descriptors to express the profound inspiration the artist has given me? I can’t. I’m neither that eloquent nor that subtle with my praise. Jen Buxton is one of those artists.

I’ve never met Ms. Buxton or seen her play live (I do follow her on Twitter @jen_buxton). She lives in Australia and played The Revival Tour (Chuck Ragan, Tim Barry, Ben Nichols, Frank Turner, Jon Snodgrass, Chad Price, Tom Gabel, Brian Fallon, etc.) when it swung through. That’s some pretty stiff company to keep, but something tells me that Ms. Buxton fit in just fine.

Her debut record Don’t Change Your Plans was one of my favorite records released last year. It’s not an in your face rock ‘n roll barnstormer. It’s a slice of mostly acoustic confessional songwriting in the vein of Micah Schnabel’s When The Stage Lights Go Dim. But like Micah (or Ben Nichols or Patterson Hood or Craig Finn), Buxton has a way of making you enjoy her miss steps, identify with her pain, and take another shot of rotgut before finding the next bar, the next stage, or the next lover.

I can’t recommend it highly enough. The lyrics are a revelation and the music has the heartfelt emotional impact of Ben Nichol’s acoustic work.

RIYL: Lucero, Two Cow Garage, The Gaslight Anthem, Tim Barry

This One’s for Him is a tribute to one of America’s greatest songwriters, Guy Clark. It was one of my favorite records released last year, though I am just now getting around to a review. It contains, by far, the strongest songwriting of any record released last year. But to be fair, no one else really stood a chance against this 30 song collection of Guy Clark’s best.

Lovingly produced by Tamara Saviano, the record features a dedicated house band of some of Guy’s closest friends and partners in crime, Shawn Camp, Verlon Thompson, and Jen Gunderman, with others popping in throughout. This continuity goes a long way in creating a seamless listening experience– in contrast to the standard hodge podge of sounds that normally accompany such “tribute” records.

Each of the featured singers brought their guitars and their voices and that was it. The only way to convey the staggering amount of star power that showed up is to list them.

Rodney Crowell
Lyle Lovett
Shawn Colvin
Shawn Camp
Ron Sexsmith
Rosanne Cash
Willie Nelson
Rosie Flores
Kevin Welch
Suzy Boggus
Ray Wyle Hubbard
John Townes Van Zandt
Ramblin’ Jack Elliott
James McMurtry
Hayes Carll
Joe Ely
Emmylou Harris & John Prine
Steve Earle
Verlon Thomas
Terri Hendrix
Radney Foster
Patty Griffin
Kris Kristofferson
Gary Nichols, Darrell Scott, & Tim O’Brien
Jack Ingram
Vince Gill
Robert Earl Keen
Terry Allen
The Trisha’s
Jerry Jeff Walker

The list says a lot about the kind of respect Guy Clark endears. What says more is the 30 songs featured here, a tour de force of songwriting that seems almost fictional in its depth and breadth. I’ve been a fan of Guy Clark for years, but I think it really took this record to make me realize how GOOD he is. My initial Clark favorites are all highlights here, Radney Foster’s take on “LA Highway,” Patty Griffin’s soaring interpretation of “The Cape,” Kris Kristofferson’s trademark growl on “Hemmingway’s Whiskey,” Vince Gill meeting the challenge on the emotionally charged “Randall Knife,” and Joe Ely’s iconic rendition of “Dublin Blues.” The latter, I have to admit, is probably my favorite Guy Clark song and I love Ely’s version.

It was the discoveries on this record that really sent me to cloud nine though, Shawn Camp singing “Homeless,” James McMurtry plowing his way through “ Cold Dog Soup,” the sly Hayes Carll on “Worry B Gone,” the other-worldly awesome Emmylou Harris and John Prine dueting on “Magnolia Wind,” Steve Earle rumbling his way through “The Last Gunfighter Ballad,” Terri Hendrix painting a picture of unparalleled vividness on “The Dark.” I could obviously go on and on and on, but I think I’ve made my point.

This is a great record and I can’t recommend it highly enough. I recommend listening on a Sunday morning with the sun streaming across the front porch and a warm cup of coffee in hand. You won’t regret it.

I’m Dead, Serious is the second solo record from Two Cow Garage frontman Micah Schnabel. It follows 2010’s acoustic bombshell, When The Stage Lights Go Dim. In between the two, Two Cow Garage put out their fifth record Sweet Saint Me.

So, dude’s been busy.

His lyrics, as always, are phenomenal, opening with a chorus of “so you keep your little choir boys/ they sing so sweet/ but they don’t make noise like I do/ like I did, in your heart.” The music, however, didn’t blow me away on the first couple of listens. Maybe it was because any record that followed When the Stage Lights Go Dim was gonna have a hard time living up to that bruised masterpiece, but I was initially underwhelmed by I’m Dead, Serious.

That being said, I listen(ed) to it constantly. Since I received my early pre-order copy in mid-December, I found myself returning to the record again and again. Whether in the car, at the computer, or listening to my 10 year old Ipod, I just gravitated towards it. The songs are great and have the emotionally charged lyrics and delivery that I love in bands/artists like Lucero, Frank Turner, Jen Buxton, The Hold Steady and of course Two Cow Garage.

Yea, some of the music and lyrics sound eerily similar to some of Schnabel’s earlier work. But hell, I love everything he’s put out, so why wouldn’t I like this record? The answer is quit over-analyzing and enjoy.

Early favorites:
“Choir Boys”
“Heavy Things”
“The Confessional”
“Zen and the Art Of….”

If you want to get a Twangville reviewer’s attention, mentions of beer, whiskey, or other spirits will usually go a long way. When songwriter and guitarist Jess Hoefner floated me a bottle of bourbon the other week, I knew I had to fulfill my long put off promise of reviewing his band’s latest EP, Gone for Good. Lucky for me (and you), Gone for Good is a wickedly delicious slice of alt. country stomp rock.

My initial comparison for the band is always The Jayhawks, but not for the usual reasons. I’m not talking about the trademark Louris-Olson harmonies as much as I am referencing The Jayhawks ability to easily connect the dots between Gram Parsons and The Beatles. Mud, Blood, and Beer can sound straight out of the 60′s folk rock tradition (The Byrds, The Beatles) and turn right around and channel 70′s country rock (Neil Young, Parsons, CCR). The mix of pop, classic rock, and country influences can reference Lou Reed and the Carter Family in the same breath. The diversity of influences keeps the EP from fading into the background as each song emerges from the speakers to challenge the listener with something different.

This emerging alt. country band is playing a free show in NYC on Saturday February 4 at the historic Bitter End to celebrate the official release of Gone For Good. The band will be giving away some free copies of Gone for Good as well as some other goodies.

#1 was the easiest pick on the whole list. Frank Turner blew my mind this year. I re-discovered his back catalog just prior to the release of England Keep My Bones and now have a new favorite songwriter.

Other notables on the list include several “new” artists who inspired me this year, including Zoe Muth, Jen Buxton, and the incredible Alabama Shakes.

BEST OF 2011

1. FRANK TURNER, England Keep My Bones

Easily my favorite record released this year. Not a bad track on this record. Most are life-affirming.

2. GILLIAN WELCH, The Harrow and the Harvest

The return of one of Americana’s most beloved artists. Welch and Rawlings exceed impossibly high expectations with this spare but lively collection of songs. The best LP of their storied career in my book.

3. AMERICAN GUN, Therapy

Twangville contributor Todd Mathis fronts these (former alt. country) rockers. This record comes in right behind England Keep My Bones for most played record of 2011. It ain’t country, but it’s damn sure some of finest independently released rock and roll I heard this year.

4. JASON ISBELL & THE 400 UNIT, Here We Rest

This is easily my favorite of Isbell’s post-Trucker releases. It feels calm and unhurried, serving up his strongest set of tunes since The Dirty South.

5. GLOSSARY, Long Live All of Us

This one was a grower for me, but eventually nudged its way higher and higher up on this list. Glossary is a classic American Rock Band and Long Live All of Us is a classic American(a) album.

6. JEN BUXTON, Don’t Change Your Plans

This record may be my biggest revelation this year. I have yet to write a review of it, even though I have been obsessing over it for the last three months. Jen Buxton is an Australian songwriter, who palled around with the otherwise boy-only Revival Tour when it swung through the land down under. With admirers such as Frank Turner, Ben Nichols, and Chuck Ragan, Buxton is exactly as good as you would think.

7. STEVE EARLE, I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive

This record may not rate as highly for other long-time Earle fans, but I continue to rate it highly. It has a number of good to great songs and is an excellent listening experience back to front. “Gulf of Mexico,” “God Is God,” “Heaven and Hell,” and “This City” are favorites.

8. ZOE MUTH & THE LOST HIGH ROLLERS, Starlite Hotel

One of the biggest surprises for me this year, Zoe Muth it making some excellent country music up there in Seattle. The Lost High Rollers features both a pedal steel player and a mandolin player and the interplay between the two is excellent.

9. BEN SOLLEE, Inclusions

Sollee created a masterful, genre hopping record that traces a line from Miles Davis to My Morning Jacket back to the Carter Family.

10. THE DECEMBERISTS, The King Is Dead

Easily the most straight-forward Decemberists record and easily my favorite Decemberists record. Peter Buck and Gillian Welch drop in for some guest spots. Both seem to influence the record quite a bit. I wish I could write that about every record.

11. JOHN HIATT, Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns

John Hiatt is the man. If you disagree, you are wrong.

12. BUTCH WALKER & THE BLACK WIDOWS, The Spade

Another excellent slab of infectious tunes from Mr. Walker. Not as memorable as I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart, but just as catchy.

13. MY MORNING JACKET, Circuital

Jim James and Co. refuse ot make a bad or boring record.

14. RYAN ADAMS, Ashes & Fire

Adams best effort since Heartbreaker. Let his one grow, it has beautiful tunes.

15. THE JAYHAWKS, Mockingbird Time

Louris and Olson make a record that lives up to The Jayhawks name and still expands upon their trademark sound.

16. DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS, Go-Go Boots

Better than The Big To Do. Not as good as Brighter Than Creation’s Dark. “Mercy Buckets” is my favorite song from 2011.

17. ADELE, 21

You don’t have to like Adele. But if you don’t you probably don’t have a soul, or at least not an appreciation for classic soul music.

18. CARY ANN HEARST, Lions and Lambs

Local Charleston, SC girl makes a big splash this year. The record isn’t as good as seeing her live with Shovels and Rope, but its still pretty damn good.

19. HAYES CARLL, KMAG & YOYO

Fails to live up to the brilliant Trouble In Mind, but still a pretty good record. The duet with Cary Ann Hearst, “Another Like You,” is killer.

20. LUCINDA WILLIAMS, Blessed

Blessed, we are….to have Ms. Williams recording excellent records into another decade.

21. RICHARD BUCKNER, Our Blood

Perhaps my favorite Buckner record since Bloomed.

22. SOCIAL DISTORTION, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes

A couple great songs mixed with a fair bit of filler. The good songs are great and rock unabashedly.

23. OLD 97′s, The Grand Theatre Vol. 2

Nothing as immediately infectious as “Every Night Is Friday Night,” but on the whole I liked this one better than Vol. 1.

24. ABIGAIL WASHBURN, City of Refuge

Ms. Washburn veers yet again this time to……indie rock. And it works. I would listen to far more indie-rock if they played more banjo.

25. CAITLIN ROSE, Own Side Now

A gentle, breezy record that becomes quickly infectious. Favorites include “Learning to Ride” and “Shanghai Cigarettes.”

BEST EP

1. ALABAMA SHAKES, S/T

2. Crooked Still, Friends of Fall

BEST LIVE RECORDS

1. Joe Pug, Live at Lincoln Hall

2. Guy Clark, Songs and Stories

Glossary is a band that I have always defined by their (relatively) more mainstream friends. Lucero, Two Cow Garage, The Hold Steady, the Drive-By Truckers, and Conor Oberst have all praised the band effusively. Despite these endorsements, Glossary has never really broken through to the kind of indie rock-stardom that those friends and mentors have achieved. I’m sure I could hypothesize several semi-credible or half logical reasons for this, but they would just be rationalizations. What I can say is that I have been a fan of the band’s patented brand of southern-indie rock for the last couple years now and their back catalog is uniformly impressive. Which makes it odd that upon receiving Glossary’s 7th record, Long Live All Of Us, I was initially underwhelmed and almost on the verge of hating it.

The Making of Glossary’s 2011 release Long Live All Of Us from This Is American Music on Vimeo.

I can’t really explain this reaction, except to say it may have been a timing thing. I popped the CD into my dashboard around 5:45am in the morning during my hour plus Monday morning commute. Needless to say my mood was less than cheery, and so my appreciation of the bouncy opening tracks was minimal. The horns on the second track, “A Shoulder to Cry On,” in particular grated on my ears. So I tossed the record aside and found some good depressing music to listen to for the commute (Dwight Yoakam I think). Re-visiting the record on a relaxed Sunday afternoon, I find that Long Live All Of Us is a pretty damn good record and one that I enjoy more and more on repeat listens (even the horns).

The opening “Trouble Won’t Last Always” sounds like a soul song, but also manages to recalls The Stones circa Exile On Main Street and Dylan’s “Tonight I’ll Be Stay Here With You.” Twangy guitars, a bright bass, and some double time piano give the song a warmth that is likely a product of the recording environment. The band having, somewhat famously, spent a month recorded Long Live All of Us in a house in rural Tennessee. The house was reportedly sandwiched between a church and a condemned meth lab, check out the videos above). “Cheap Wooden Cross” is another highlight that seems to channel 2000 era Wilco with some killer lines like “I guess nothing has any meaning until you want it to.” “When We Were Wicked” is classic Glossary in rock mode, as they send up a glorious ode the rock and roll house show, “don’t you wanna feel like we did before/ yeah, when time it didn’t matter/ dancing on the porch to the rock and roll/ made you laugh, made you sing/ made you feel like you were someone.” The closing “Ghosts in the Vapor” is a fitting end to the record, a slow burning hymn-like song with some eerie pedal steel over a canvass set up by the subtle-rumbling rhythm section.

On the whole, Long Live All Of Us may be Glossary’s best record to date and just may cement their status as the best unheralded band in America. Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.

RIYL: Exile On Main Street, The Rolling Thunder Revue, Summerteeth, 1372 Overton Park, #1 Record

All that being said, the band is grounded by the voice of front-woman Brittany Howard, who recalls some of the best R&B singers of the 60′s and 70′s (names like Aretha Franklin, Al Green, Otis Redding, and Janis Joplin are easily referenced). I know this seems like som lofty language and may come across as a little hyperbolic to some, but hell I can’t help it. This band is bad-ass. They are my new favorite band and I will anxiously await the release of their debut full length.

Check out the band here. Or go see them on tour, opening up for the Drive-By Truckers.