Dan Sartain - Lives

In these superficial times, spending a career dressed top to tail in rockabilly garb singles anyone out as a little strange. But rather than masquerading as a pub-rocking Lonnie Donegan, Dan Sartain embraces this oddity and places it at the forefront of his boisterous musical endeavours. The Alabama-born troubadour’s latest LP Lives is testament to the man’s idiosyncratic make-up.

Laden with twanging chords and reverb drenched romps, it’s an album that embraces the myriad sounds of the 60s. From Voo Doo’s rumbling horror shtick, to Those Thoughts’ full throttle skiffle, and onwards to the guitar surfing paranoia of Bad Things Will Happen, Sartain skilfully captures a dark, monochromatic snapshot of retrograde America. With such broad scope, a few duffers like beatnik blurt Whatcha Gonna Do? invariably appear. But these niggles fail to scuff away at an accomplished veneer that proves the strangest paths can sometimes be the more fruitful. [Billy Hamilton]