With all of the exuberant buzz around
Lil' Cap'n Travis
, it's easy to be skeptical. How many
alternative country
bands, after all, have exploited
country
cliches and borrowed a few crunchy chords from
Neil Young
?
In All Their Splendor
, however, will do nothing to dismiss the cheerleaders on the sidelines. It's true: a number of no-depression groups have achieved decent results by throwing steel and
honky tonk
guitars into the mix, but
also enjoys grafting on oddities from other genres to create a strangely intoxicating hybrid.
"Natural Fool"
could almost pass for some kind of
song, but the slightly trippy lead vocal and even trippier harmony turn it into the type of
song
the Holy Modal Rounders
might've recorded. With its three-four time,
"Dapple Gray"
trots along like a cowboy pony under the influence, while
"Steady as She Goes"
indulges in a bit of South Seas escapism. It's possible that the listener would grow tired of the novelty of it all, but
does a good job of mixing up tempos, arrangements, and styles to keep things interesting. In fact, it's only when the band plays it rather straight, as on
"Swimming Pool,"
that they seem to lose their direction.
is a solid follow-up to
Lonesome and Losin'
, and will please fans and anyone looking for a band that's able to escape the usual cliches. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.