Tuesday, January 22, 2008

BRIGHTER THAN CREATION'S DARK

Drive-By Truckers

There are more than enough excellent songs on "Brighter Than Creation's Dark" to affirm the Drive-By Truckers' status as torchbearers of gritty, straightforward Southern rock. There's also enough filler to suggest the band could use some self-editing once in a while.

But that would be completely out of character for the Athens, Ga., group known for concerts longer than Sunday's Giants-Packers game. And while criticizing an album for being too long might not hold much weight in this "create-your-own-playlist" world, at 19 songs and 75 minutes, "Creation's Dark" doesn't quite have the juice to succeed as an epic statement.

Last year's departure of guitarist Jason Isbell has thrown off the Truckers' equilibrium just a bit. He emerged as a key piece in the band's three-guitar, three-songwriter attack and, while Patterson Hood remains reliably consistent, Mike Cooley is stretched a little thin here. "Bob," "Lisa's Birthday" and "Checkout Time in Vegas" are musically indistinguishable, heavy on the twang and cliched lyrics. Much better are swampy roots rockers "Three Dimes Down" and "Self Destructive Zones."

If Cooley draws caricatures, then Hood paints detailed portraits with his words. "That Man I Shot" packs a punch with both its Crazy Horse-inspired guitar mayhem and its thoughtful lyrics about an Iraq veteran coming to terms with his service. Banjo-specked opener "Two Daughters and a Beautiful Wife" and "The Opening Act" are similarly affecting, but "You and Your Crystal Meth" is just silly.

Bassist Shonna Tucker (Isbell's ex-wife) acquits herself nicely on her first three songwriting contributions to the band, but the efforts of pedal steel guitarist John Neff and keyboardist Spooner Oldham are more noteworthy. The duo's subtle instrumental touches give the set of tunes more depth, even if the set itself is a little too deep.

-- David Malitz

DOWNLOAD THESE:

"Three Dimes Down," "Self Destructive Zones," "That Man I Shot"