Americana Round-Up If you’re ever on the look out for a seriously underrated alt. country singer-songwriter, then Collin Herring is your man. He’s consistently brought out great records which don’t seem to follow any set pattern: straight up roots rock has never been quite enough for the Texas based Herring, and his latest, Past Life Crashing (Independent), does nothing to buck the trend. A mix of spiky rockers and down at heel ballads tell the (true) story of a couple of stays in rehab and a turbulent marriage and subsequent divorce. He’s not had an easy couple of years by any means, but if this is the result, it’s difficult to wish him any better. www.collinherring.com If Americana is as broad a church as we’d like to think it is, let’s include My Sweet Patootie. Their album, Nowheresville (Easy Bake Records) certainly includes elements of Americana, but they appear to great take great delight in mixing up jazz, gypsy, swing and chirpy, semi-humorous wordplay. It could have been one to avoid, but it’s not. Sandra Swannell and Terry Young seem to be having so much fun that you’d have to be a committed sourpuss to take any offence. www.mysweetpatootie.com The Whiskey Ring are an altogether more serious concern. Taking their sound from the Replacements school of alt. country, with guitars very much at the forefront, their Better Than Some, Worse Than Others (Independent) album is a prime example of middle American rock ‘n’ roll. Fortunately, thanks primarily to a vocalist who sounds a little like Stephen Malkmus and a few cracking songs - “As Big As Life”, “Tuesdays At The Morganfield” and their signature tune “Rust Belt Blues”, they’ve managed to carve out their own sound, and it’s well worth checking out. The Believers are Craig Aspen and Cyd Frazzini, and on their latest record, Lucky You (CoraZong), they play polished, rootsy country pop which isn’t a million miles away from The Kennedys or, for older folks, classic Fleetwood Mac. It’s perfectly executed, with plenty of pop hooks and no shortage of choruses that stick like glue. Whether they’re different enough from their influences to really make a mark, I’m not so sure, but if easy on the ear, ‘70s country rock, with sweet vocals and smooth edges floats your boat, it’s worth the effort to find out. www.thebelieversusa.com For a lot of modern Americana bands, the trick is to blur the lines. That’s especially true of this latest wave of bluegrass and old time influenced string bands. Crooked Still are no different. Bluegrass provides the core of their sound, but it’s their other influences that make new record Still Crooked (Signature Sounds) so appealing. “Captain Captain” could have sat comfortably in Sandy Denny’s repertoire - can’t say that without mentioning that Aoife O’Donavan takes lead vocals throughout. “Did You Sleep Well?” wanders effortlessly into Gothic country folk territory, and “The Absentee” would have happily found a home on the Oh Brother soundtrack, if it wasn’t for the melancholy of Tristan Clarridge’s cello in the background. www.signaturesounds.com Rob F. Next Past Reviews: March 07, April 07, May 07, June/July 07, Sept/Oct 07, Dec07, Jan08, Feb 08, Mar 08