Reviewed on Sep 7, 2006 by Ben

It’s official, the punks love country. While it hasn’t been announced in the New York Times or Globe and Mail, one only has to take a curious look around to figure it out. Johnny Cash is beloved by the punk scene. The last album he was alive to put together got the five-star treatment on these very pages. What makes it even more obvious is that a lot of mid-life punkers have turned to country as a release for material that proved to be square pegs to their bands’ round holes. Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard did Rumbleseat a while back and Regan’s solo-material is already well-received by fans of Hot Water Music. Tim Berry of Avail is poised to release a solo album via Suburban Home soon, and Lucero is straight blowing up. It’s not just a southern thing either, The Weight, one of the best in the punk-country fan-sharing community is from New York City.

Lastly, don’t even act like you don’t own a pearl-style button-up shirt.

Drag the River could up the punx just as well as any of their contemporaries, you just might not notice it on the surface. However, a little bit of digging will reveal that the band’s foundation lays in the songwriting partnership of its founding members. Chad Price, who played in All, while Jon Snodgrass handled vocal duties for Armchair Martian. With both those bands now inactive, Drag the River has evolved from a side-project into a real-life band. Meanwhile they’ve picked up some more players including Spacey Casey, J.J. Nobody, and Hot Rod Circuit’s drummer Dave Barker to come along for the ride.

If the band’s membership doesn’t convince you these dudes are punk rock through-and-through, check out their output and the largely DIY approach they’ve taken over the last four years when they managed to pump out no less than ten releases of various length, both interpedently or through various small labels.

But the punk rock connections largely cease one Drag the River’s latest effort, It’s Crazy (Esta Loco if you bought it on wax), starts playing. Much like their previous work, you’d think this was straight up Memphis alt-country if you didn’t know any better – never mind that the band is rooted in Colorado. It’s Crazy is chalk-full of tales of drunken sorrow and love gone awry. Price and Snodgrass’s vocals are backed by slow-tempo drums and steel-guitar through much of the album.

One of It’s Crazy’s strongest attributes is that it’s clear this is a band comprised of friends who want to be playing music together. Its 12 songs sound as though they were written on creaky front-porches or around camp fires, and are probably best enjoyed in such a setting.

Unfortunately, It’s Crazy lacks the kick found in Drag The River’s last studio release, 2004’s Hey Buddies. While their work released two years ago was heavy on the electric guitar and foot-stomping beats, It’s Crazy takes a more mellow approach, only picking things up occasionally, most notably in tracks like ‘Cousins,’ and ‘Amazing G.’ It’s Crazy does have some moments of playful spirit through it, but it’s largely a somber record. However, that’s not always a bad thing – the last My Chemical Romance record made me cry (albeit for different reasons) and look at how many copies they moved.

Drag the River aren’t going to win over anyone who wasn’t into their kind of music to begin with. Leave it to Lucero to build that bridge. But once the fans arrive, they’re going to find they were missing out all along.

Related Links:

• Drag the River

1. Leavin' In The Morning
2. Tired And Fired
3. Mr. Crews
4. Me And Joe Drove Out To California.........
5. Beautiful And Damned
6. Strange
7. Amazing G
8. Cousins
9. Dirty Lips
10. Fire And Flood
11. Paradise Grounded
12. The Cause And The Cure

Album Reviews

It's Crazy Aug 15, 2006