GRAVE BROTHERS, THE : The Grave Brothers

Tip your ten gallon hat to The Grave Brothers, ‘cause they finally got around to making their very first full-length album, after their 2009 EP and the split platter with Adios Pantalones from 2013. That’s not even a fistful of releases in a dozen years of band history, so one might think they’re a bunch of lazy cunts. Far from it, goddammit! The reason for their selective output is that the five members were and are active in a string of other splendid ensembles, such as Fifty Foot Combo, The Mudmen, Demented Scumcats and Speedball Jr.
Toss all these names in a huge gumbo pot, let it boil over while Hank I and III haunt the stereo, and there you have it: finger-licking good cowpunkabilly for wild-eyed guttersnipes and booze buckaroos.
Along with self-penned barn burners and toned-down foot stompers, there’s two more surprises: Dwight Yoakam’s classic of the Bakersfield sound “This Drinking Will Kill Me” gets peppered with banjo and “Mother Of Earth” is a countrified salute to The Gun Club. Yes, these guys are a rum lot, but they know extremely well how punk, country, psychobilly and garage rock originated and crossed over, which makes their own songs all the better. So the old PPSR credo also goes for The Grave Brothers: Good music is good drinking! The CD version comes in a classic plastic jewel box