The sub-title of this review could be “Uncle Lucius, a band in 3 acts”. In the early-mid 2010’s, Uncle Lucius was emblematic of the Austin bands that could make a living without ever sleeping in a hotel (although they certainly did their fair share of touring). Then in 2018 front man Kevin Galloway decided it was time to step out on his own and the band did a farewell tour, ending with a multi-night swan song at the legendary Gruene Hall. Of course, life happens. Pandemic blah, blah. One of their songs gets picked up by Yellowstone and turns gold. The band members got together to celebrate that and, lo and behold, realized they missed playing together. So they went into the studio and made, essentially, their second debut album, Like It’s the Last One Left.
The record opens with Keep Singing Along. With its lazy, funky beat it sort of picks up where the first band left off, a central Texas stye of jam band somewhere between Little Feat and The Meters. It’s advice to just keep rolling with it gets echoed in I’m Happy, a rock waltz about “just letting things be the way they’re going to be.” Galloway’s signature vibrato conveys a little more sadness that the title would have you believe, though. Trace My Soul likewise has a slower tempo in a self-examination to “let my tragedy give way to comedy, ’cause that shit is funny.”
Galloway’s humor makes an appearance in All the Angelenos. It’s an outlaw country shuffle about all the Californians moving to Austin for a better life, and in the process screwing up what they were coming for in the first place. It features Reckless Kelly’s Cody Braun on fiddle. There’s a similar theme in Holy Roller, with traveling preachers as confidence men of the new century. Civilized Anxiety is a driving, guitar-laden rock number where “too many people with too many places to be” is about as good a description of the rat race as any. The CD finishes with Heart Over Mind, a sort of pop rock number stuffed with strings that creates a movie soundtrack for making big life decisions.
Uncle Lucius was always known as a live band, and with the addition of a second guitar player and a new bassist I doubt that reputation will get tarnished. But somewhere between Act I and Act III, the band seems to have embraced the studio process as well. As a result, Like It’s the Last One Left is the most rounded of the band’s catalog, and a great way to introduce yourself if you missed them the first time around.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.