Builders & The Butchers
Dead Reckoning
The Builders and Butchers combine folksy Americana with a hybrid of Celtic and Southern gothic traditions, creating a sound that doesnt evoke one specific location as much as a patchwork of long-forgotten places. The guys keep things loose on their third album, Dead Reckoning, whose 12 songs were recorded in a series of live takes with few overdubs. The result isnt as lushly textured as Salvation Is a Deep Dark Well, which found the Builders beefing up their old-time folk songs with 21st century production, but its far more representative of their live show. Apart from guest performers Amanda Lawrence and Zy Orange Lynn, both of whom add string parts to the album, Dead Reckoning is a stripped-down effort, with acoustic instruments taking precedence over their electric counterparts and a sense of raw, off-the-cuff energy reigning supreme.