THE BAPTIST GENERALS

Jackleg Devotional to the Heart

2013-10-13

  Jackleg Devotional to the Heart, the second album from The Baptist Generals, has been a long time coming.  The album was recorded in 2005 and was promptly trashed.  The band felt that it sounded too much like other indie-rock.  Eight years later, The Baptist Generals are trying it again with an alt-country sound. Starting out with an instrumental, the album then goes into the folk-rock focus track, "Dog That Bit You". For tracks 3, 4, and 5, it gets a bit quiet, yet remains interesting with its plethora of instruments.  Track 6, "Three Bromides", takes the band name to heart with its pulpit-style vocals over subdued percussion and small bursts of guitar. Immediately after,  "Broken Glass" surprises with its  tempo changes and marimba (perhaps creating a new sub-genre...prog-folk?).  The album gets quiet again for the remaining tracks before culminating in the orchestral and fascinating "Oblivion Overture".  All in all, I found Jackleg Devotional to the Heart to be an engaging listen.  

Rebecca Ruth  

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