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| Photo courtesy of the band |
who’d I got to blow
to get in this fuckin’ show
I have loved the Old 97’s for a very, very long time, and I have always counted Satellite Rides as my favorite record, but I have a deep and abiding soft spot for the early early releases, the dirty anger and twang of Hitchhike to Rhome and Fight Songs, and holy cow, is Most Messed Up the kind of record I’ve secretly been waiting for the 97’s to make for, apparently, years. Since Fight Songs, I suppose. (Did you know that Fight Songs is the only 97’s record whose title doesn’t appear in the lyrics to a song on the album? Now you do. That’s one less brain cell towards your Nobel in chemistry, though. Sorry.)
It’s bitchy and mean and fucked up and twangy and the chorus of “Nashville”, one of the singles off the album that drops on 4/29, I mean, come on — the lyrics are up top there. It’s completely NSFW, so bear that in mind. It’s filthy and furious and gorgeous, completely. It’s two and a half minutes of the misery of the life of a musician, and I can’t stop listening to it.
The Triangle just missed Rhett Miller solo — last Saturday at the Cradle Back Room, and it was blisteringly excellent — but the 97’s are touring hard this spring in support of Most Messed Up. Speakers In Code places-where-we-have-writers dates: North Carolina gets them in Asheville with Lydia Loveless on 5/30, St. Louis on 6/18, Minneapolis 6/20, and Nashville on 6/26 (all without Lydia, alas).
And honestly, if you haven’t ever seen the 97’s live, if you missed them on the Too Far To Care tour last year, go see them this year. This record is going to be amazing, and their live show is unmatched.
And, you know, Rhett Miller is really nice to look at, if you like that kind of thing. I do. I also like the shit out of this song.