Ryan Bingham & the Dead Horses: Junky Star | CD review

# Americana

# Country

# Pop and rock

(Lost Highway)

Bingham's slow-burn career as gritty troubadour took a stellar turn when he won an Oscar for "The Weary Kind", his theme to Crazy Heart. This third album attempts no subsequent fancy crossover. Bingham and his band play a mix of sinewy country-rock and downbeat ballads, with Springsteen, Creedence and Townes Van Zandt among their touchstones. Bingham's gravelly vocals ooze experience and integrity, and songs such as "Depression" and "Direction of the Wind" cast an acute eye on the US's social decay. A talent for the times.

Contributor

Neil Spencer

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Ryan Adams: Ashes & Fire – review
Ryan Adams returns to what he does best on an album of gentle country and soulful pop, writes Ally Carnwath

Ally Carnwath

08, Oct, 2011 @11:04 PM

Article image
Ryan Bingham – review
His Oscars success made him a poster boy for US roots music. Now Ryan Bingham has emerged as a protest singer offering searing indictments of America, writes Ed Vulliamy

Ed Vulliamy

16, Nov, 2012 @1:32 PM

Angus & Julia Stone review – powerful and easy on the ear
The siblings return with an album that adds power to their trademark blend of blissed-out Laurel Canyon folk and eerie MOR, writes Paul Mardles

Paul Mardles

02, Aug, 2014 @11:05 PM

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy: Wolfroy Goes to Town – review
The prolific Will Oldham returns with a sparse, intimate album that rewards careful listening, writes Kitty Empire

Kitty Empire

29, Oct, 2011 @11:05 PM

The Felice Brothers: Celebration, Florida – review
The Felice Brothers include synths and found sounds to winning effect, writes Molloy Woodcraft

Molloy Woodcraft

21, May, 2011 @11:05 PM

AA Bondy: Believers – review
AA Bondy's hushed melancholia is quietly spellbinding, says Phil Mongredien

Phil Mongredien

27, Nov, 2011 @12:04 AM

Article image
Gillian Welch: 'A lot of the songs are done in one take. Maybe two'
Celebrated acoustic duo Gillian Welch and David Rawlings talk to Phil Hogan about authenticity, Nashville, and why there's nothing 'old' about their music

Phil Hogan

20, Nov, 2011 @12:04 AM

Article image
Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland; Gillian Welch – review
Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland – Coldplay Redux – take a break from arenas and stadiums, writes Kitty Empire

Kitty Empire

27, Nov, 2011 @12:06 AM

Josh T Pearson: Last of the Country Gentlemen – review
Josh T Pearson's solo debut is terrifyingly intense, writes Ally Carnwath

Ally Carnwath

13, Mar, 2011 @12:05 AM

Lucinda Williams: Blessed – review
Lucinda Williams may have found love but her reflective songs have lost none of their power, writes Neil Spencer

Neil Spencer

20, Feb, 2011 @12:05 AM