Reckless Kelly,
Wicked Twisted Road

Label: Sugar Hill Records
Year: 2005

(4 out of 5)

Willy and Cody Braun have spent much of their lives on the road. They grew up traveling and performing with dad Muzzie and brothers Micky and Gary (now of Micky and the Motorcars) before forming Reckless Kelly and moving to Austin in the late 1990s. Lessons learned from this nomadic lifestyle inform their band's solid new release, Wicked Twisted Road.

Reckless Kelly showcases its versatility on this new album from Sugar Hill Records.

The title track and "Dogtown" start things off on a solid alt-country footing. "Wicked Twisted Road" perhaps summarizes the road-weariness of a band that routinely spends 200 nights a year touring: I hit the million-mile mark at seventeen years old / I never saw the rainbow, much less a pot of gold / My first love was a wicked twisted road.

But then "Seven Nights in Eire" introduces a Celtic rhythm to accompany randy tales from touring abroad. Here weariness is overcome by reckless excitement and alcohol-fueled camaraderie.

The poppy, harmony-heavy "A Lot to Ask" mines the familiar territory of a broken relationship. "Motel Cowboy Show" twangily celebrates the supposedly bygone days of musical freedom and experimentation. Then "These Tears" returns to sturdy pop, replete with solo on crying electric guitar.

"Sixgun" presents a major—and welcome—shift in styles. Sonically reminiscent of "Crazy Eddie's Last Hurrah" from 2000's The Day and Cross Canadian Ragweed's Live at Billy Bob's Texas, "Sixgun" is a menacing tale of violence and revenge. The storyline is similar to Robert Earl Keen's "Road Goes on Forever," but with ferocity of Ragweed at its angriest.

But then "Nobody Haunts Me Like You," perhaps the most memorable song on the album, manages to make "Sixgun" sound mellow in comparison. Willy growls and snarls his way through this one: You were the one I believed / Stigmata hands always bleed / You were the one kept my feet on the ground / Then brought me down to my knees / Nobody haunts me like you.

"Wretched Again" melds blues and pop with still a trace of lingering anger. "Broken Heart" and "Stick Around" threaten to end the album with a whimper. But "Baby's Got a Whole Lot More," a renunciation of life on the road, finds Reckless Kelly settling back into a solid alt-country groove. An instrumental reprise of the title track closes things out.

There's little doubt that Reckless Kelly presents some of the best musicianship in Texas music today. Willy's world-weary vocals and rhythm guitar provide the signature sound. Cody is gifted on fiddle and mandolin and contributes backup vocals to boot. David Abeyta provides high-spirited lead guitar and shifts smoothly from country to rock and back again. Bassist Jimmy McFeeley and multi-talented percussionist Jay Nazz pace the band.

While the vocals and instrumentals are consistently stellar, the songwriting is uneven. A full half-dozen songs beat the formulaic pain of broken relationships into the ground. But there are some lyrical gems: the somber "Wicked Twisted Road," the experimental "Seven Nights in Eire," and the raucous "Sixgun."

Wicked Twisted Road is overall quite good, roughly on par with Under the Table & Above the Sun if a little more daring in terms of sounds and styles. Yet one can't help but believe that Reckless Kelly's best work still lies ahead of the band.

Buy: Lone Star Music, Amazon

March 15, 2005