y bar favourites, the Ruminants, celebrated the release of their debut album on April 19 with a barn burner at Mikey’s Juke Joint. Which was only fitting, since the self-titled album was actually recorded in a barn.
It was a savvy move. The acoustics of the big old Rockyford barn lend an extra level of heartache to the soulful harmonies on tracks like Time is a Bleach and The Note. You can all but hear the lonesome freight train wailing in the distance beyond the barn walls on the lead track, Railyard, and on the dark reverb within the belly hollers of tracks like Anywhere But Here.
The Ruminants’ debut album is a tasty melange of heartache country and hook-laden stompers. You really should pick it up and have a listen to some down-home Calgary alt-country.
