English Oceans

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The big buzz on Drive-By Truckers’ 12th album is that Mike Cooley, the band’s secondary writer after Patterson Hood, penned six of the album’s 13 tunes, making <i>English Oceans</i> a dialogue between the two senior members. This friendly conversation/competition only further strengthens a band that’s always considered songwriting of premium importance. Recorded over 13 days at Chase Park Transduction Studios in Athens, Ga., with their longtime producer David Barbe, <i>English Oceans</i> features nasty, grungy guitars (“Pauline Hawkins”), stinging social commentary (Cooley’s “Made Up English Oceans,” Hood’s “The Part of Him”), and a virtual walk through rock ’n’ roll history, with the opening Lynyrd Skynyrd barroom romp “S*** Shots Count” and the chiming Byrds-like “Primer Coat” (or is that R.E.M., considering its Athens roots?). There's a Celtic vibe to “Grand Canyon,” a tribute to Craig Lieske, a longtime member of the band’s road crew who died suddenly and to whom the album is dedicated.

via Apple Music