Album

The Search

Son Volt

Released: Jan 2007

Label: Transmit Sound

As Wilco were reinventing themselves as indie rockers, Son Volt stuck with alt country. That changes with this LP. The first song is an exquisite, piano-driven dirge with looped 12-string guitars picked psychedelically as Jay Farrar sings, "Feels like drivin' 'round in a slow hearse," over and over. Things pick up unpredictably with "The Picture," as a horn section accompanies Farrar's melodious, political gripes (at least some things haven't changed). And damn if "Satellite" doesn't sound like Gang Of Four. Shannon McNally harmonizes on "Highways And Cigarettes."

Eric Shea