country music

Longtime X frontman John Doe and Canadian jangle-merchants The Sadies have each spent their careers putting a personal spin on rockabilly and traditional country music. Doe has been exploring the shadowy booze-and-motels side of the genre, while The Sadies’ Travis and Dallas Good have ventured into mountain mysticism.

Country Club, the album resulting from their collaboration, was released in April, and features a mix of classic cover songs, with hints of modern hits. The group's vintage country feel may have been an accident, but it's an accident worth celebrating.

Doe remarks, "We're not sure why it sounds like it's from the sixties. Maybe that's our favorite era of country music or maybe that's what we listened to when we first learned how to play it. But what was called 'Countrypolitan' always seemed one of the coolest hybrids of country music. But we agreed quickly and completely that there were going to be no string sections, horns or choirs. Bakersfield vs. Nashville was never a dispute . . . Bakersfield!" Dallas Good of The Sadies continues, "The songs chosen were very ambitious, and while we haven't re-invented the wheel we have created a cohesiveness between several hit country & western singles and our own styles."