Written by Eric Sperrazza
There is something uniquely American about outlaw country. Country music, as a style, can be imitated but there is a spirit about outlaw country that can never be duplicated from any band without living the American experience.
Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jessi Colter, and more, led the charge to create a style that was all-encompassing of honky-tonk blues, country, and rockabilly and was filled with sheer defiance and grit that carries on with bands to this day.
Enter, Pennsylvania’s own, Buckskin Whiskey. A band that is known locally for encapsulating the very soul of outlaw country and about to make its debut on the national stage with its first album, Roll On.
These six individuals seem poised to pick up the mantle of their legendary predecessors and continue the outlaw style of country music to a whole new generation of listeners!
The first track on the band’s new release is “Sleeping Around” and it does a great job in setting the tone for the rest of the album, a vintage rock sound with affectionate notes of Molly Hatchet sprinkled throughout. This song makes you feel ready to fire up your pickup truck, load up your bird dog, and head on down to the neighborhood bar for darts and brews.
The track, “Hell Hounds of Colorado,” still has the anti-conforming grit of the outlaw style, but it leans in a bit on that modern country feel, as well. Still, great storytelling and boot-tapper while on the audio journey.
If there was ever a song that I could say had life breathed into it by the ghost of Willie Nelson and other vintage outlaws, it is the third song on the album, “Simple Kinda Life.”
In the moments that a simple life was painted for me within the song, I felt like a gambler, on the road, again; a true tribute to the sounds and heroes that came before the six talented members in Buckskin Whiskey!
What’s wildly impressive is the track “Outta Tennessee,” which brings to mind the flavors of Lynyrd Skynyrd and Stevie Ray Vaughn. In that, you can hear the ruggedness of the genre, but there is a classic art to the song progression that still feels country.
Out of all the songs on the LP, the most impactful, in my opinion, was “Roll On.” There is so much emotion that spills over. In this song, it must be listened to more than once, to take it all in. You are treated to motivation to move forward, amidst adversity, wrapped in the perfect outlaw love letter to your significant partner in crime, all at once.
All in all, there is something for everyone with the debut record of Buckskin Whiskey.
Whether you are a musicophile of the classics like Hank Williams Jr. and Merle Haggard, a country fan of the likes of Garth Brooks, or into 38 Special and Chris Stapleton, this group has something to empower you on a Saturday night at the billiards table with a glass of Jack in your hand and a fighting American spirit in your heart.
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