Dead Reckoning

We may already be this screwed, the Builders and the Butchers seem to be suggesting throughout Dead Reckoning. High time we started shouting about it. The Builders and Butchers combine folksy Americana with a hybrid of Celtic and Southern gothic traditions, creating a sound that doesn 't evoke one specific location as much as a patchwork of long-forgotten places. The guys keep things loose on their third album, Dead Reckoning, whose 12 songs were recorded in a series of live takes with few overdubs.

The result isn't as lushly textured as Salvation Is a Deep Dark Well, which found the Builders beefing up their old-time folk songs with 21st century production, but it 's far more representative of their live show. Apart from guest performers Amanda Lawrence and Zy Orange Lynn, both of whom add string parts to the album, Dead Reckoning is a stripped-down effort, with acoustic instruments taking precedence over their electric counterparts and a sense of raw, off-the-cuff energy reigning supreme.