Nashville Pussy - From Hell To Texas [Album]

Steamhammer / SPV

With a career already spanning over a decade, Nashville Pussy have established themselves as a big time player in the world of heavy metal. After the relative success of their previous album ‘Say Something Nasty’, 2009 release ‘From Hell to Texas’ hits our shelves with an abundance of expectation.

The husband-and-wife relationship of Nashville’s Blaine Cartwright and Ruyter Suys is somewhat unique with only the brief and low key marriage of Jack and Meg White of The White Stripes comparable in the alternative music scene. Somewhat ironically the male contingent involved with the latter now resides in Nashville, Tennessee.

‘From Hell to Texas’ opens with the superbly paced ‘Speed Machine’, the meaningful guitar riffs, steady drum beat and strong rock n’ roll vocals are all reminiscent of the Nashville of yesteryear. By all accounts it’s an excellent introduction which certainly whets the appetite for what’s to come.

Nashville Pussy has produced an album which absolutely reeks of fun. The following two tracks; ‘From Hell to Texas’ and ‘Drunk Driving Man’ both have a real vintage bluesy rock feel to them in which you’ll find all the appropriate guitar riffs, drumbeats, and gritty vocals.

It’s apparent that Nashville Pussy’s lyrics are inspired by the drink and drug culture, with it clearly being a pastime they enjoy, having little time for much else. We are introduced to the controversially named ‘Lazy Jesus’ in which Blaine Cartwright laments religion by stating followers; ‘...don’t do nothing except tell everybody they’re wrong’.

Track number five, ‘I’m So High’, continues in a similar vein to what’s been previously heard but in all truth this and ‘Ain’t Your Business’ both wash over the listener in a sea of nothingness. These two records aren’t bad by any stretch of the imagination but it could be argued that a slight lull in the middle of the album is definitely witnessed.

Nashville Pussy soon picks up their high standards again with ‘Dead Men Can’t Get Drunk’ and the political undertones heard in ‘Late Great USA’ – Nashville Pussy expressing concern for the current plight of the United States economy, who would have thought it!

‘Pray for the Devil’ turns on the style once more with another rendition of a bluesy punk influenced record. The vocals are a little brash in parts but that’s soon rectified elsewhere by a strong vocal finish. Song of the whole album could easily go to ‘Why Why Why’ which signifies everything Nashville Pussy represent. A real head banging track with excellent lyrics, great structure and fantastic guitar and drums.

The penultimate track on the album, ‘Stone Cold Down’, is delivered in a relatively calm manner which fits in well with the rest of ‘From Hell to Texas’. Somewhat fittingly the album concludes with an ear pleasing four minute performance of ‘Gimme a Hit Before I Go’.

Nashville Pussy are a band who simply won’t push the boundaries and try to achieve a new sound, but when they continually produce rock n’ roll of this quality, why bother?

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