It’s kinda hard to believe that it’s been nine years since a new Buffalo Tom record, especially in light of the fact that their alternative ambition helped inspire a multitude of like-minded insurgents who have now all but passed them by in their absence. While it doesn’t bow to the same punk platitudes that swayed their earliest, J Mascis-assisted efforts, Three Easy Pieces nevertheless shows a similar unrepentant posture, its ragged, guitar-driven tenacity ensuring a certain looseness on the fringes. Still, Buffalo Tom isn’t a wandering herd; their rousing melodies and ebullient anthems create a compelling brew, whether surging straight on, as with “Good Girl,” “September Shirt” or “Bottom of the Rain” or nipping at the heartstrings via “You’ll Never Catch Him,” “Lost Downtown” or the title tune. There’s added embellishment too, in the aching steel guitar that sweeps through “Thrown” or the ever-so-slight Celtic flourishes elevating the stirring “Gravity.” Singer Bill Janovitz’s heavy-lidded vocals find middle ground somewhere between Neil Young’s world-weary wail and Keith Richards’ raised middle finger, resulting in a drive and determination that’s riveting from its first notes to its last. “I’m gonna draw you right in,” Janovitz promises on the swaggering album opener, “Bad Phone Call,” and from that point on there’s never a doubt that he means to keep his word.
--Lee Zimmerman
