Album Review: Son Volt - Honky Tonk

Since Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy spilt their pioneering alt-country partnership Uncle Tupelo back in 1994, it's been Tweedy who's hogged the accolades as he's developed country-rock powerhouse Wilco, while Farrar has preferred to stay the course and fly (relatively) under the radar with his more traditional outfit Son Volt. Honky Tonk, their seventh studio album, stays true to the band's blueprint – being reverent to the past but with a mandate to forge forwards – with typically sound results.

The band long ago honed their distinctive sound – partly due to their instrumentation, partly because of Farrar's ragged, expressive voice and a lot to do with his excellent songwriting – and there's little departure here in that regard, although there are some overt honky tonk leanings (hence the album title) and a corresponding increased focus on pedal steel and fiddle, although Farrar himself stays rooted to his acoustic guitar (as he did on 2009's American Central Dust). Opener Hearts & Minds is a sedate waltz, followed by the more straight-ahead alt-country of Brick Walls, this track essentially setting the tone for Honky Tonk – the album meanders along in this vein for the duration, with little deviation or fanfare. The upbeat Bakerfield tips its hat to the spiritual home of honky tonk and Down The Highway is a solid road song, but for the most part it's all fairly reminiscent of their past recordings.

Son Volt remain a great band at the forefront of their field, but Honky Tonk doesn't really bring much new to the table. Still a solid album with much appeal for existing fans and those into Americana in general.