Crop Circles – Home Sweet Home

“Daddy drinks because you cry,” sings Earl Brooks on “Daddy Drinks”. The song is a sweetly shuffling number with a nimble banjo line, Brooks’ voice hovering between hurt and humor without ever showing its hand. It perfectly encapsulates the charm of the Crop Circles’ approach, mixing rural heart and urban irreverence into its country-rock blend.

Brooks is a veteran of the Seattle scene, having paid his dues in several late ’80s and early ’90s bands before forming the Crop Circles in 1994. Home Sweet Home is the band’s third and most accomplished record. Brooks’ songwriting is at its finest, a mixture of driven country-rockers and slower acoustic strolls full of dark humor that parses sentimentality.

“Sub Pop Girls” and “My Town” take tart aim at Seattle’s hipster culture and urban growing pains, respectively. The album opener “Serenity Now” boasts a jittery catchiness that belies its lyrics. “Star In My Heart” is a beautifully realized Billy Joe Shaver cover, with Brooks’ voice conveying raw ache and hard-won knowledge. While the country-rock rave-ups display the bands’ tightness, the slower songs reveal the hurt between the wisecracks.