If you’re looking for surprises, don’t look here. If you didn’t like Patterson Hood before this album, you won’t like him now. If you already like him, you’ll love it. Oh, and if you don’t like him? You’re insane.
Whether he’s on his own or playing with the Drive-By Truckers, Patterson Hood has always spun hard-living, hard-luck (and often violent) stories, sung with gravel and rusty nails. Murdering Oscar is no exception–“I don’t need redemption for my sins/I don’t need salvation ’cause I saved myself,” Mr. Hood sings on the title track, “I killed Oscar, and I forgave me.”
Just listen to the song titles: Screwtopia, Granddaddy, Fooling Young Bastard, Heavy and Hanging, Back of a Bible. He’s up to his old tricks. And I’m damn glad.
How glad? Glad enough to post this tremendous show, that’s how! Patterson covering Springsteen’s Darkness . . .
Badlands
Something in the Night
Candy’s Room
Racing in the Street
Darkness at the Edge of Town
