ALBUM REVIEWS: Chris Shiflett’s ‘Lost at Sea’ Is a Satisfying Soundtrack for the Wayward

It makes sense that Chris Shiflett’s newest solo album, Lost at Sea, is a little here, there, and everywhere. Shiflett’s own musical resume is an expansive exploration of geography and genre.

Throughout the ’90s, Shiflett honed his guitar chops in California punk roots in bands like Lost Kittenz, No Use for a Name, and Me First and the Gimme Gimmes before landing his present role as the full-time guitarist for Foo Fighters by decade’s end. From there, he’s toured the globe countless times with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band while flirting with a number of side projects — superficial and serious — playing everything from death metal to outlaw country. In recent years, Chris Shiflett & The Dead Peasants became a solo venture, and a steady stream of Nashville-centric records have emerged, produced by Dave Cobb, including 2019’s Hard Lessons.

Chris Shiflett (photo by Joey Martinez)

Suffice it to say, Shiflett’s vast experience and musical expertise allow him to feel at home in most settings, and Lost at Sea might even be a titular nod to an inability to pinpoint a proper “home” for this set of songs — not that they need one. It’s what makes Lost at Sea so compelling throughout, 10 compositions that swing through honky-tonks, raise fists in arenas, and sit alone at the bar.

Not only is Lost at Sea filled with masterful guitar work, but the songcraft itself is very impressive. Shiflett’s just as effective sharing narratives and noticings, and combined with the album’s musical breadth, Lost at Sea pleasantly surprises at each turn. “Overboard” is an intimate midlife moment between lovers in which there are “No little voices down the hall Distracting us at all, oh no.”

“Dead and Gone,” which features Charlie Worsham’s notable dobro work, waves goodbye to childhood friends who’ve passed too soon as Shiflett confesses, “I don’t know how to mourn / Y’know I’m getting numb.” The best he can offer is a semi-comforting line, “Well I hope the good book’s been good to you.”

Every glass in the house will be raised when Shiflett plays the classic country of “Where’d Everybody Go?” Drinkers and thinkers will also fall in love with Shiflett’s protagonist on “Carrie Midnight Texas Queen” with its modern Nashville flavors. Then there’s the sobering reality described on “Parties,” a straightforward rock number that closes the album by pointing out the anger underneath the surface of us all these days.

Shiflett finds his stride on “Damage Control,” a musical outlier (yes, even on this far-reaching collection) as a banjo-forward, California pop number featuring layered reverb. It’s here Shiflett begs a love not to leave, framing her as “damage control.” “Ain’t seen that look in a while / The one that soothes me to my soul / Don’t take it away / My damage control.” It’s Nashville wordplay and West Coast vibes merged into a near-perfect track — the perfect distillation of Shiflett’s journey.

Chris Shiflett’s Lost at Sea is out Oct. 20 on Blue Élan Records.