REVIEW: Slobberbone, Barrel Chested (Doolittle)
- Scott A. Miller
"Some people try for all their lives but they never make a dent." This is the second line of Slobberbone's sophomore effort Barrel Chested (Doolittle) and while it may be true for a lot of folks, it should not be the case with this Denton, TX, alternative country act. This is the band's second strong album in a row and fans of the insurgent country movement should add both to their collections immediately.
Slobberbone has been kicking around the Denton, TX, music scene since 1992 when Brent Best decided to start playing in public the tunes he was writing in his bedroom. The band's debut Crow Pot Pie was originally recorded to land Best and company better gigs around Denton and nearby Austin. Jeff Cole, Doolittle's Mr. Everything, re-recorded it and the resulting incendiary blend of metal, punk and country caught on with a national audience.
Barrel Chested has all the elements that made Crow Pot Pie a winner (two of the songs were even record during the "Crow" sessions), but it shows Best maturing as a lyricist and arranger. It still includes a few hyped up punk numbers ("Lame" and "Haze of Drink"), a couple of longer jams ("I'll Be Damned" at 7:02 and the sadly beautiful "Get Gone Again" at 6:17), and more songs about beer and whiskey (most of the above plus "Little Drunk Fists" and "One Rung"). The arrangements, however, now make deft use of fiddle and dobro, so the "country" isn't overwhelmed by the band's punk-metal fury. And the lyrics find Best struggling harder for redemption against tragic flaws like alcoholism, pride and bad luck.
When he sings "I'll be damned if I let you pick me up and brush me off and give myself a reason to live" he may be projecting a truckload of punk attitude. But it's that same attitude - that tragic flaw - that keeps him from reaching the happy ending. "A happy ending would have belittled what I was driving at," Best says. "The point of the album is not letting myself off the hook."
From "Crow," Best proved he could write a punk songs, country songs and metal songs. For this outing, he put a few new notches in his songwriting belt. The suburban folk tale "Engine Joe" has nice Appalachian feel to it until it gets to its boot-stomping fuzz-box break. Afterward it quiets down again, still leaving you with a smile. "Little Drunk Fists" is quieter than anything on either Slobberbone album, but at the same time, it may be darker. The rich violin of Susan Volez, who has worked with Poi Dog Pondering and John Mellencamp, adds a mournful quality to a sad story.
Though Mike Hill plays guitar on the album, he has since left the band and Jess Barr has taken over guitar duties. Brian Lane on bass and Tony Harper on drums have been with Best since the pre-Doolittle days.
Best, who also plays guitar, handles all the vocal duties in a voice that ranges from southern-fried rebel yell to introspective singer-songwriter to beer-soaked pub philosopher, sometimes in the same song.
When the alternative country moniker is thrown around, many draw a direct line to the early Uncle Tupelo albums. But having listened to albums like No Depression and Still Feel Gone, I can honestly say Slobberbone has more in common with bands like AC/DC, pre-_Don't Tell a Soul Replacements and country's outlaw artists like Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson than with the aforementioned Uncle Tupelo.
Slobberbone's country is more rural, its rock is louder, its punk is more ferocious. As the song goes, "I'll be damned."
