As long-time readers of the site well know, my favorite genre after power pop is alt-country/Americana, so when an artist is at the junction of these two genres I definitely take notice. St. Paul's Charley Dush is one such artist, and he's refined his art to a craft here on September's Sun, his fourth album. Members and former members of such bands as The Jayhawks, Son Volt and The Honeydogs help Charley out here, and if your tastes run in the George Harrison/Tom Petty/Traveling Wilburys area, this disc is a real treat.
"Whiskey Mama" opens on the country side of things, all fiddle, honkytonk piano and sing-along choruses, while "Drug Test Blues" follows, reminiscent of a more uptempo "For You Blue". "Trouble" is just a flat-out great pop tune, with sweet harmonies and backing fiddles; "Come In From The Cold" is a midtempo roots number a la the Wilburys' "End of the Line", and "Maybe Mounds Park" is a Kinks-style rocker in a pensive key. Other highlights include the Beatlesque "Sorry", the rollicking "Jukebox Pulpit" and the trippy 5:44 closing title track, which gives Dush and his mates some room to strech out. Another winner from perhaps Popicana's most consistent artist.
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