On getting this CD, I looked at the cover and thought it was going to sound like something recorded for SST or Sympathy For the Record Industry from the 1990's. Oh how wrong could I be as although it has a really cool cartoon cover that would have worked on that sort of record, the album by Palouse, Idaho's BART BUDWIG is much more reflective of someone who comes from the middle of nowhere.
Why the album opens with a weather forecast is beyond me. After that it is full of simple drums and double bass-fuelled country with some cool lap steel playing. When he sings of being "Hopeless and Happy" on Weary Mind I knew where he was coming from although this album isn't that hopeless.
The acronymically titled MDLYBGUTBC is slow and maudlin and mildly magnificent as it broods its way into my ears. A Coke And A Smile a song about his mother passing away is the high spot of the record sounding like a cross between The Band and Little Feat. It's a really cool song that closes the A-side.
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The only song on the B-side that stood out was Smokin': a pretty cool country song that's worth a listen. The rest of the B-side had that B-side feel of a record where they had enough for a couple of great EPs and stretched it to an album. Still if they can get out of Idaho and tour a bit they may well grow into a more interesting band.
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