Kelly Hogan & The Pine Valley Cosmonauts: Beneath The Country Underdog

Closely following Neko Case's remarkable Furnace Room Lullaby, the arrival of Kelly Hogan's Beneath The Country Underdog is enough to stir up talk about the return of the female country power singer. Last seen with The Pine Valley Cosmonauts (whose ranks include The Mekons' Jon Langford, his Waco Brothers bandmate Steve Goulding, and The Bottle Rockets' Tom Ray) paying tribute to Western Swing legend Bob Wills, Hogan here has a different sort of country in mind, although putting a finger on it may be difficult. The album opens with two classic country covers—Johnny Paycheck's "(It's A Mighty Thin Line) Between Love And Hate" and Willie Nelson's "I Still Can't Believe You're Gone"—but it eventually incorporates some Muscle Shoals soul (the Percy Sledge staple "Sudden Stop") and The Magnetic Fields' "Papa Was A Rodeo." A multifaceted interpreter who's equally comfortable singing sweet songs of heartbreak and belting out the raucous duet "Wild Mountain Berries" with "Rudy Day" Hopkins, Hogan establishes herself as one of the most capable neo-country torchbearers around. If a musician can take comfort in the quality of her admirers, Hogan is blessed, as well; in addition to her all-star backing band, guests include Edith Frost, Robbie Fulks, and John Wesley Harding. They have excellent taste: Hogan has the kind of voice that doesn't make what she does sound easy, but she always makes it sound good.