Sturgill Simpson has never been afraid of evolution. His 2011 debut was a slice of Nashville country music, and the follow-up delved deeper into the genre’s outlaw roots. His third release was doused in soul. On his latest effort he sets upon creating a huge, monstrous version of everything he’s done before — and it’s thrilling.
This is an aural assault of an album, full of towering guitars, galactic synths and writhing psychedelia. Simpson subverts his own musical legacy — Best Clockmaker On Mars sounds like a mutated 12-bar blues, while Last Man Standing is roided rockabilly — with plenty of fresh experimentation, too. A bubbling bassline redolent of Talking Heads is worked into A Good Look, and Make Art Not Friends goes from electronica to power-pop to synth-rock.
The album even seems to catch itself off-guard, with tracks often crashing into each other. There is some respite, like on the windy, night-time stroll of All Said And Done, but even this is eventually disrupted by an acerbic guitar solo.
The final track, Fastest Horse in Town, is the biggest of the lot — a seven-minute barrage of overdriven noise, and a fitting end to a humongous success.
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