On the shelves...

When looking at someone's information of Facebook, one of the most common things that one finds is that a lot of people, when asked about their favorite music, will say "everything but country." What's wrong with country? It's honest, emotional and catchy. It's everything you could ever ask for from your music. Memphis, T.N. ruffians Lucero have been cranking out southern-fried country rock for a decade now, and they have just released their crowning achievement, the stunning "1372 Overton Park." The band, long famous for mostly acoustic arrangements and lead singer Ben Nichols' whiskey-and-Marlboro-soaked deathbed drawl, have taken a stylistic turn for the better on their major label debut for Universal Records. The recordings were presided over by excellent punk producer Ted Hutt, most famous for his work with the Bouncing Souls, Mighty Mighty Bosstones and the Gaslight Anthem, and he really did a bang up job getting Nichols up from his drunken stupor and forcing him to actually sing instead of just wheeze between drags off cigarettes.

"1372 Overton Park" begins with the poignant "Smoke," a tale of two young lovers running away together set to a cinematic soundtrack or organs and guitars that whirl together perfectly, evoking the image of the couple driving off into the sunset while Nichols wails about "The unknown and beautiful." Certainly an odd way to start a record, but it works within the context of what Lucero are trying to accomplish here: a country rock record with plenty of horns and dance parts. The second track is anthemia as well, keeping the horns in the background. Lyrically, this is a little more classic Ben Nichols' "I'm a drunk loser" style, but the chorus is just so catchy it makes the listener forget about the downer theme.

The record's first single and standout track, "The Devil & Maggie Chascarillo," is a full on 50s- style swing through a California party to chase down a "punk rock girl" named Maggie. The chorus is phenomenal, the guitars are pitch perfect, the horns really add to the song and Nichols' sounds like a man possessed by parties and love and alcohol and all the wonderful things in life. This is the best song the band have written in years, and it really picks up the middle of the album and helps carry "Overton Park" through to the end. The token Lucero drinking song "Sixes and Sevens," which features a little Aerosmith-esque opening guitar line and some really cool 70s harmonies and imagery, follows "Maggie." "Johnny Davis" and "Hey Darlin', Do You Gamble?" bring the rock for the latter half of the album, which gets a little weighed down by a couple slower songs, including a tribute to Nichols' mother, which closes the record. A lot of these songs sound like they could be played at weddings or high school dances. In sharp contrast to the band's back catalog, these are happy, top down, beers on a Friday night kinds of songs.

All in all, "1372 Overton Park" sounds like mid 70s Bruce Springsteen dipped in Southern grits with just a touch of punk spirit on top. It's a true rock n' roll record about drinking, women and hard times that anybody could enjoy: even if you don't like country. "1372 Overton Park" can be bought at Best Buy for $11.99.