Various
Start Your Own Country
(Loose Music)
Loose Music’s compilation has a great cross-section of Americana. The artists here put the label in the same league as Yep Roc and Eleven Thirty. Some of the highlights include San Francisco’s Two Gallants, sounding a lot like Bright Eyes, as well as Steve Ketchen and The Kingston Hillbillies covering The Clash’s “Straight to Hell” with an old-timey touch that would have made Joe Strummer proud. The disc also includes Can-con with Roger Dean Young and hot artist Jim Bryson, who gets some help from Jim Cuddy. Unlike most compilations where the listener has to wade through a lot of garbage, this disc is a treasure chest of new talent for alt-country fans.
—Trevor MacLaren
This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2007.