Alien Country
Like My Life Depends On It
(Alien Country)

Liam Marcus Torres, the solo artist, songwriter, and instrumentalist behind Alien Country, delivers quite the range on Like My Life Depends On It. Mixing pedal steel (quite upfront in the mix when it appears), fiddle, electric guitar, ukulele and even Theremin, Torres creates a rockin’ alternative country stew.

Though the mid-tempo snare and loud pedal steel informs  “So Called Friends,” the opener, it’s the picked electric and harmonies of the second tune, “Reality Check,” that pulled me in to this record. And that same quick plucking, up-front slide and harmonica on the faster paced “Desire,” kept my feet a’tappin.’

The fiddle swirl with ukulele pluck of “Mommy Dearest” makes for a cool slow instrumental opener to my favorite track here, the rockin’ “Remedy.”

Actually the mid-to-end of these 13 tunes work best for me. They all certainly get more rockin’ and Torres’ use (overuse, I feel) of his loud pedal steel falls away.

“Hold Me,” is a chewy rocker with a fiddle in the background, and a solid singable chorus. When the clean electric lead slips in it is so welcome.

“How It Could Have Been,” a love lament, is another rockin’ tune, again sporting some fine plucked electric. “No One Is Coming for You Tonight,” is just a roiling rocker with the best guitar work yet from Torres.

Alien Country’s Like My Life Depends On It is best when it rocks, and rock it does after lifting from some country stabs at the beginning half of the album.