The marriage of Punk-Rock and Country music has been a fruitful union for years now. The Von Ehrics of Dallas, TX are yet another unapologetic spawn of the DNA that has produced The Supersuckers and Hank III. Loaded (Crustacean Records), which is The Von Ehrics third release, relentlessly displays their willingness to rock. Where certain acts, such as The Avett Brothers or O.C.M.S. combine a roots-y vibe with certain punk sensibilities, specifically in their live shows, The Von Ehrics are a gritty, grimy Country/Punk hybrid of the tallest order.
The opening track, “Leave Me Out”, sets the tone with a break-neck pace. When vocalist Robert Jason Vandygriff belts out, “my pockets just as empty / my bones just as cold“, it is even more apparent that this isn’t your sister’s Phil Vassar disc. It’s the homespun vocals of Vandygriff that mainly keep this Punk train on the Country tracks. Augmenting the country credentials of this album is the one of a kind cover of Billy Joe Shaver’s “Old Chunk of Coal”. Take away the twangy singin’ and the tribute to Shaver, and Loaded would be an all-out punk assault, similar to the releases of Rancid of NOFX, which isn’t a bad thing by any means. With the tracks, “Week of Living Dangerously” and “Buy Me Drink”, we hear tales about heading off to the “neighborhood beer joint” and beyond, looking for trouble of various sorts. Add to the subject matter the greasy, grooving licks of these numbers, and you have an album that will make a punker go country and turn a cowboy into a tattooed biker with a scraggly goatee.
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