It's not that unusual for an indie band to get signed to a major label only to be dropped when its record fails to sell, but 's troubles were a bit more complicated. The Mississippi combo's debut EP was picked up for release by in 2006, but they soon severed ties with the band; then signed to , only to have the cool indie label drop them as well after 2008's didn't live up to expectations. Adding insult to injury, three of 's five members opted to quit, and with just a few weeks to spare, (lead vocals and guitar) and (lead guitar and vocals) recruited a drummer ( ) and a keyboard player ( ), asked their producer to do double duty as bassist ( ), and rolled into the studio to record their second full-length album. And given the circumstances behind its creation, it's little short of miraculous that is so strong and cohesive; these ten songs combine the scrappy energy and nerve of a rock band that's spent a few years barnstorming tiny clubs with the grand-scale ambitions and sonic grandeur of art rock. 's vocals can shift from a gentle falsetto to a full-on bellow at will, and his guitar interplay with follows a similar formula, with plenty of bark and just the right degree of filigree. The makeshift band that backs them handles the material beautifully; the bandmembers are clearly talented enough to bring both skill and imagination to the performances, and they clearly didn't have the time to overthink the material, so the melodies sound fresh and naturalistic even at their most elaborate. And the songs make it clear that the group's confidence was well justified; and sure know how to tell a story, and from the ragged-out road tales in to the ill-starred drifters of they paint taut and memorable little portraits in words, and the melodies fit them beautifully, be they dark, sweet, or thunderous. have gone through a string of bad luck that would cause many reasonable people to throw in the towel, and instead they've created the strongest and most accomplished work of their career; you usually don't hear stories like this outside of bad TV movies these days, but at least from a creative standpoint this band has pulled off the come-from-behind victory of the year. ~ Mark Deming