Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons, Death Won’t Send A Letter
A rollicking, raucous country-rock grapple with sin and redemption
The age-old, American struggle between sanctity and sin — between raucous, Saturday night shenanigans and bleak, Sunday morning repentance — fuels a good chunk of Death Won't Send A Letter, Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons's major label debut. That gives Chisel, a singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Appleton, Wisconsin, loads of Americana cred: God vs. the Devil, after all, is the very same scuffle that fueled the storied careers of Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and too many Delta blues howlers to count. Produced in part by Jack White-cohort and power-pop yelper Brendan Benson, and in part by Joe Chiccarelli (who has manned the boards for the Shins, the White Stripes, My Morning Jacket, and more) Death Won't Send A Letter is a rollicking, country, folk, and gospel-inspired rock record. Chisel's voice — somewhere in between Jakob Dylan and Robbie Robertson — is worn and warm, like a good pair of jeans, and he sells his anguish: "I've been feeling like my old self again, because Mama didn't raise me to be no Christian," he slurs on opener "Born Again," over a haze of organ and guitar. Chisel is a classic boots-wearing troubadour, road-hungry and ready: "We'll all die young if we're lucky, babe," he promises.
