Review by Josh Felty
Rating: *****
I've listened to many different types of music in my storied twenty-nine years: having grown up in Eastern Kentucky, I've heard my share of bluegrass and honky-tonk country. In all honesty, there's nothing quite like that sound, pioneered by folks like Hank Williams, Dr. Ralph Stanley, Garth Brooks and countless others. Having recently moved back to the Eastern Kentucky neck o' the woods has reintroduced me to all sorts of traditional music; bluegrass, country, old-time stringband, etc. Call it what you want, but hillbilly music--similarly to rock--enjoys quite the frequent pendulum down/upswing every year or so.
To that end, I feel it's amazing bands such as Honky Tonk Hustlas make their way into the music world. The rockabilly sounds within Hallways of the Always remind one of Hank Williams right away. No question about it. Tremolo-induced guitar twangs, drum brushing, and no doubt upright bass-thudding abound throughout this one. And with songs like "Devil Let Me Be" and "Ed's on the Prowl" (itself regarding the inspiration for Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Ed Gein himself), there's plenty of intriguing, dark subject matter being discussed between the twangy landscapes. Violins and banjos wax along in "The Path I Tread", a song of warning on the subjects of loneliness and that pesky aspect of life known as hindsight. "Torn Between Two" paints a portrait of two smalltown hussies hanging on either arm (and you'll hear 'hussy' on this one a few times) while "You Ran Me Off" moseys along with a drumrim-fueled rhythm.
The great thing about the Honky Tonk Hustlas is their channeling of Hank Williams and that old-time country sound, complete with that all-too-familiar nasally vocal. Add to that a plethora of mild obscenities, whiskey talk, and yarns about meeting demons and devils along the way and you have in Hallways of the Always an incredible, lush record constantly winking back at you from underneath a grimy cowboy hat. It's not so much psychobilly as it is pure country. None of this modern Prozac-pop country that's on the radio now. This is the true heart of country, recalling not only Ol' Hank but The Man in Black and a few other hellbent threads, evocative of the rock 'n roll spirit in many ways.
I was immensely pleased with this collection of songs and hope to listen to more of the Honky Tonk Hustlas' brand of country in the future. As with any music, it's alluring to watch the pendulum of evolution in sound, style, and topic emerge from within the ether and breathe fresh life into the mundane, processed sound of modern radio. Big up and a yee-haw to Honky Tonk Hustlas for such an entertaining, provocative release as Hallways of the Always.