Country Westerns
Country Westerns
Fat Possum
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A band’s success relies upon proportions. Artists build good music by combining what came before in compelling ways. No one does anything new, but there's a skill to how much of any one sound a band borrows, in addition to the layering of various influences. Ultimately, that's the most striking thing about Country Westerns’ self-titled debut: their crafting of a perfectly balanced mix of pop, grunge, ‘70s punk, and just the right hit of country. It's a great-sounding album that demonstrates the importance of a proper musical ratio.
Country Westerns is Nashville-based by way of Brooklyn. Singer-guitarist Joseph Plunket, formerly of The Weight, moved to Music City to open a bar, eventually hooking up with drummer/actor Brian Kotzur of Silver Jews and Harmony Korine's experimental film, Trash Humpers. Bassist Sabrina Rush then joined the band, sending the trio off and running. Plunket's ragged voice is full of character, sounding exactly like someone who left music to open a bar and wound up back in a band. His voice somehow energizes each track with its weariness, almost like the music is feeding off of him. It's country in energy, if not in technique.
And it seems like Plunket is providing the music with plenty of nutrition, as it's full and aggressive but also laid-back in a typically country way. The first few times I listened to Country Westerns' mix of punk and pop, I thought of Ireland's Stiff Little Fingers, but in going back to listen to them, I realized that while the energy and melodicism matched, Stiff Little Fingers was much harder and faster. But the two bands share a thread of building beautifully hummable songs out of the chaos of clattering drums, springy bass lines and plenty of distortion.
A track like "I'm Not Ready" is driving, the rhythm section locked in a gallop, Plunket's guitar calling out with pretty melodies while also spitting out distortion. The track's scale is small. No one takes up much space, lending to its ‘70s punk sound. The joy of the song is its anthemic melody and the visceral pleasure of a groove that feels like a car in neutral coasting down a steep hill; it's the delight of momentum.
"TV Light" recalibrates the band more toward country, Plunket practically screaming the chorus, Rush's bass pulling the song, and a din of background vocals like a stadium of fans cheering on a beloved team. Their cover of the Magnetic Fields' "Two Characters in Search of a Country Song" is perhaps the most country song on the album, taking the Magnetic Fields parody/homage and like Geppetto to Pinocchio, making it real, live country.
Rock & roll and country often find themselves intermingled, but there are degrees. Some artists are mostly country with some rock & roll flourishes. Others are rock & roll with a country affect. Country Westerns is able to take country's outlaw spirit and infuse it into punk-influenced rock & roll, resulting in an album that doesn't sound country, but carries the genre in its DNA.
Notable Tracks: “I’m Not Ready” | “TV Light” | “Two Characters In Search Of A Country Song”
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