Saturday, February 16, 2008

Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark

Great record by a great American band. I've listened through only about six times, so these are initial impressions. I inevitably find the DBT records soak in over time and warrant repeated listens.



When I first heard Jason Isbell left the DBT's (he and the bass player got divorced - she got the band) I was sorry, as he was my favorite DBT songwriter and singer. After hearing his solo record, a bootleg of a solo show, and this DBT record within the same twelve months, I realized that aside from his absence from their live shows (a big aside), it will be a net gain for me as a fan, because the collective output from both sources will likely be greater.



This record sounds more to me like Decoration Day and Southern Rock Opera than Blessing and A Curse. Mike Cooley and Patterson Hood do the usual trade offs of songs, but Shonna Tucker also wrote and sang on four songs, and they're good, including Home Field Advantage:



If you aren't familiar with DBT's, give them a try. About five or six years ago I had heard raves from credible sources, and decided to dig in. It took me a while to really get into them, but it was worth the effort.

Here's one from my favorite DBT record, Decoration Day; I think it's immediately accessible.




Brighter Than Creation's Dark is the imeem page that has all the songs from the new record. Some are full songs, some are 30-second samples, but you'll get the gist of it.

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