The Porter Draw is a band that I should hate. “Why's that?” I hear you asking. Well, Porter Draw plays alt-country Americana stuff that by its very existence should drive me up a wall. But rather amazingly, their album California Widow doesn't. As it is a cold day in heck, here I am sat listening to their album and not minding most of it one bit.
California Widow is like the best country rock album never released by anyone ever. Loaded with banjos, twangy guitars, twangy vocals, and enough depressing material to last a life time this is one dusty rough and tumble record. If country and rock can't mix don't tell The Porter Draw because they have apparently not gotten the memo and so brilliantly mix the two that California Widow has uber-crossover appeal. This is what Nashville should sound like.
Porter Draw is one band that knows how to boogie and it gets its cowboy boots scuffed and dirty throughout California Widow. It's that get down, "yeehaw," screaming vibe, and Country Bear Jamboree ho-down kind of fun that makes this record awesome. With more rockin' moments that slow ballady ones, the album rarely loses pace and your interest is given little time to fade.
The twangy rustic feeling of the songs mixed with the bands rock and roll influences truly make California Widow worthy of listening too. This is a heartbreaking pastoral record that's filled with sunsets, broken hearts, tears in your beer and enough depression to require a psychiatrist for help. It's all those things that make The Porter Draw's record so darn entertaining. I may hate the genre, but I love this record and The Porter Draw has proven themselves a fine band.
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