Partisan

There’s a song on Deer Tick’s fourth album called “Let’s All Go to the Bar.” It’s a boisterous, boozy number that belongs on a Pogues album, yet the acoustic drawl of frontman John McCauley and crew still resonates as more than drunken banter. The rest of the disc is equally raucous, as the raw recording style offers a live appeal, but McCauley’s sense of musical inebriation has a deep cohesiveness and striking emotional weight (see again: The Pogues). “Chevy Express” is tempered – a melodic calm in the midst of a storm – while “Make Believe” is an engaging indie-folk number tinged with Neil Young. There’s an overarching messiness on this album, sure, but that’s one of the aspects that makes it feel real – the product of an imperfect songwriter who articulates the imperfection in each of us.