All anybody wants to do these days is cast themselves in a remake of The Last Waltz. Martin Scorsese's concert film of the Band's final bow in 1976 is the reason the Hold Steady exists (Craig Finn testified to the movie's powerful influence when he formed the group), and it is the not-so-secret fantasy collectively harbored by Jim James, Conor Oberst and M. Ward. The Last Waltz isn't about a single sound or image — say, Van Morrison's tight, glittery purple suit — but rather an illustration of how rock 'n' roll is connected to all of American folk and soul music, and how transcendent it can be when everybody in the building believes in its power.

Invoking The Last Waltz is a monumentally presumptuous lead-in to an assessment of the debut album by Futurebirds, an Athens, Georgia, six-piece that winds up chasing the Americana ghost on its own terms. Dripping with pedal-steel guitar and midtempo twang, Hampton's Lullaby can at times sound like a modern take on Gram Parsons's cosmic country noodling. Los Angeles outfit Beachwood Sparks attempted this same feat a decade ago, but their approach was too slavish — right… read more »