LOUD music heavy on the electricity and light on the swishy keyboards! Many say this is the paragon of country music!

Railings is the fourth album from Pennsylvania's Frogholler, whose style is eloquently described in reviews of Adams Road Hotel and Idiots. My best description is "Crash Test Dummies play country!" and it's probably the alt-est of these alt bands. Besides the somewhat low, dirgy, and up-front vocals, the band's music stands out for its backwoods fiddle and banjo being spiced by psychedelic lap steel, mellotron, electric guitar, and other odd, indie, chimey, or crunchy effects. My favorite of the tunes is "Virginia," which is about a woman with springtime hair who takes her own life, but I also like the way it blends into "The Sweetest Sound" with its backwards turntable effects. Another favorite is the bluesy "What Went Down," with its minor key big band percussion blending with banjo and wailing lap steel. You can check out Frogholler on the Internet.

Scott Gibson is from Waco, Texas but he ended up in the Big A, where he spent a while with his bass backing other musicians like James McMurtry. Now he's decided to follow his own path as a songwriter on Make Ready. On the beginning tracks, Gibson's lyrics tend to get lost in the arrangements, which range from twangy to jangly. There's nothing wrong with them, they just aren't all that noticeable, except for a few pieces of the perky, romantic, "Robin-On-Hudson." Then, in a subtle stylistic metamorposis, Gibson and his pleasant mid-range voice commence to stand out. A cheerful, folky "Sunday Social" describes a big family party. But well-placed depression is his real wild card. Possibly the best song is the acoustic "Ballad Of the Balladeer." The lyrics reflect on a brilliant songwriter who is over shadowed by a cover band across the street. Perhaps he will die and then become famous. In the meantime, as the song says, "Who wants to hear the truth on Saturday night?" More depressing and interestingly queued last on the abum is "The Hardest Part Of Hurtin' (Is the Hope)," The verses are so well written and the tempo drags as a light dirge. As Gibson expains, "the only way out is up--but that means a slow, excruciating trip." You can find Scott Gibson's Web page here.

One Bar Town is from Lubeck, Germany, nowhere near Pennsylvania or Texas. As their name indicates that they've incorporated a number of sub-genera in their usually noisy rock-influenced country party music, including a little punk and indie. Frankly, I was hoping they would incorporate a little more polka than usual, but I couldn't even tell that they were Germans unless I paid attention to Kent Nielson's slurred fast vocals. I just thought they were a bunch of good old boys! Say Me A Rosary is their first album and it's sometimes slow, sometimes fast and perky. There are no outstanding melodic hooks on Rosary, and, as with Gibson's CD, often the words give way to the instruments, and then it's hard to absorb the lyrics...and it's probably even harder if you're French or Polish. Sometimes Nielson's words have an unusual cadence; in my favorite, "23rd Of October" for instance, the guitar wailings, pounding rhythm, minor key, and that exotic cadence make for a effectively suicidal charmer involving a motel, an empty bottle of pills, and sizzling gas. There are demons of sorts in many of the lyrics, and as Neilson explains, most deal with people facing a difficult period in their life. Man kann One Bar Town hier finden.

No Depression, eh? Maybe folks just tend to unite better tunes and arrangements with sad topic. These albums are all recommended for alt-country enthusiasts.