The Divorcees
Drop Of Blood
(Independent)

Quick picking and sailing slide lifts us into the instrumental opener, “Caledonia Mountain,” to land us then into the soft beat of the first real song here, “Dying Breed.” With simple harmonies on the choruses, clear-as-a-bell leading, it takes no time to realize we are deep in the blue-collar country of The Divorcees.

Calling out a non-appreciating lover on the upbeat jangle of “Losing Hand,” this wonderful mid-tempo honky-tonk ditty keeps things up and running. And although it’s drawn out and kinda torchy, “Drinkin’ in the Afternoon” presents another wry lyrical stab, with slide all over the top.

Obviously, the players here: Alex Madsen on lead guitar and vocals, Jason Haywood playing acoustic and singing, Shawn Thomas playing acoustic as well as electric guitar and lending backing vocals, Kevin Macintyre playing drums, and Denis “Turtle” Arsenault on bass, are in perfect sync. There really is no misstep across any of these eleven, each song a perfect little gem.

“Must Be Nice” features some of the best picking, as our narrator slogs off somebody without a care in the world. While “The Other Side of the Blue” slows things down, and we get some of Madsen’s best vocal and again some sweet, subtle slide work. “Too Old to Die Young” is another slower torchy tune, just enough piano, and organ slipping through; for me it’s the best song on Drop Of Blood.

The title track ends the record. It’s another one of the tunes here that cuts a little deeper with its lyric. Once again, the harmonies, the interplay between a sweetly produced layering of the guitars and a solid backbeat, deliver yet another grand old, new country tune.