Aug. 15, 2012 - Issue #878: Snap Turns 30
Cabin Fever
Corb Lund {recordings_bands_mg} Cabin Fever {/recordings_bands_mg}
New West,
4
"When the oil stops, everything stops," is how Corb Lund begins "Gettin' Down on the Mountain," track one on album number seven. Over creeping, dueling guitar riffs, it's a scathing rundown of societal meltdown and most city slickers' woeful lack of basic survival skills—which, y'know, fair point. It also reveals the wry, sharp observational tone that colours Cabin Fever right form the get-go. From the sly snark of "Bible on the Dash," which finds an alternate use for The Good Book, to the suicide ballad "One Left in the Chamber" and "Priceless Antique Pistol Shoots Startled Owner," plenty of the songs here rank among the finest Lund's ever crafted, with his backing band the Hurtin' Albertans finding a well-oiled lockstep with their frontman at every turn he takes.Even the rural non-sequitor "Cows Around" (which Lund ends with a well-delivered moo or two) does well to balance out the album's pace. A bonus disc of the album done acoustically just showcases how much of Cabin Fever holds up when stripped down, too.
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