Buttless Chaps

The Buttless Chaps captures emotion not often heard, much like the Cowboy Junkies’ The Trinity Session, and showcases some find songcraft from a new band. Much like the Scud Mountain Boys’ early records, this self-titled debut rains bleakness and seemingly revels in it, using it to flesh out lyrical honesty as portrayed on tracks like “Tom Byrne” (which faintly resembles the Scuds’ “Silo”) and “Travellin’ Life.” Things don’t get any happier either, as “Outlaw” features an Eastwood-like character (“The truth of loneliness and the emptiness of home/All push me into the open land”). A great album for those bleak winter nights, and summer ones too, and anticipation is growing for this month’s release of Tumblewire, their next full-length.