Review by Ritchie Birnie for MPM
The cowboys from the Deep South of the UK are back and they bring the fun, the heavy grass and some banging new tunes as well as a couple of live monsters.
The undoubted festival must see band kicks off the album with the blues dipped, whicky hangover tune that is “Haybelly”. This is a track that personifies the adage they are a cross between Motorhead and Johhny Cash.
It is fiddle mad, it is upbeat and has some furious and very intricate guitars. You also get the madman that is vocalist/ Guitarist Rocker Dave trying out his future career in cattle auctioneering. This is pure adrenaline.
Next up we take a different tact( or should that be track) with “Ghost Train”, a mid tempo, blues backed rocker. As always the track never sits in one genre and never, ever fits into any pre-conceived box. It is heavy on guitars and attitude and is impossible not to get your toes a tapping and emptying the old tabacco into a spitoon.
“Railroad Ghosts” comes in heavy with some beautiful Blues slide guitar and is a great intro to the relaxed “Vacation for the Mind”. Once again the guitar is majestic and fills the sound for the whole song as Dave goes on one of his cranial journeys and knowing this man that could mean he is away for days, Christ he can write a song about going to the shops.
We get a bit of 70s boogaloo on ” Two Horse Race” and we also get a journey into the crazy world of Rocker Dave once again. This band must be the only one where you can enjoy a track, shake your head and wonder “What fucking planet is this man on”? No matter his mental wonderings he can write one hell of a tune.
On “Ride Brother Ride” we get an outright monster. It comes out like a Holy Diver and holds a Sabbath vibe that Iommi would tip a hat to. I loved this song from start to stop. You could slip this into a Rock or Metal compilation and nobody would bat an eyelid. The breakdown is stunning and from first listen this could very well be my favourite track from this band.
We then slip into the live tracks and these songs capture why everybody is racing to the small tents at festivals when these boys take to the stage. the first is “Too much Willie Nelson” and if you know the factual story behind this you cannot do anything but smile as the song and the story kicks on.
The second live track and final on the album is “Bag of Bones” which clocks in as the longest number and just so happens to give the title to this album. This is another song that you have to know the story behind it. Regardless of the story this extended live number shows the talent always held within the band and its many members. This is one of those numbers that you know the band just jammed the shit out of it to see where it went. It reminds me of when The Georgia Satellites used to rip up the setlist and just went where the music took them and by God those shows were exceptional. The Outlaw Orchestra may be seen as some sort of joke, some sort of Deep South Steel Panther and to be fair both bands have incredible musicians honed over decades of live shows so the only real joke is held within the lyrics. You cannot carry off an album like “Ruff Round the Edges” without grit, determination, whiskey, beer, a little bit of planet earth and some pure stubborness. Dave hits a home run once more.
