The album opens with "Antietam." Adam Levy, who wrote this one, begins it a cappella. "Please come in closer/I'll tell a story/Of how the strong are sometimes weak/We are here briefly." The song is about a battle during the Civil War. The others soon come in on vocals, and there are beautiful harmonies. "Well, our great country was torn asunder/Two years of bloodshed, a death toll large." Those lines strike us in these days when another civil war seems possible, when half the country has turned to fascism. The instruments come in after those lines. And in the second half, there is a wonderful, rousing instrumental section. This song ends with its last several lines delivered a cappella. Then "Last Drink" has a lighter, fun vibe. Here are the opening lines: "It's time to go home/The party is over/Just put on your coat/And take your things when you go." Until that fourth line, we might be thinking they were singing of an actual party. But on that line, things turn. What's interesting is that the sound makes us think of something lighter, like the end of a party, and that seems to inform how the guy of this song is taking it, for he sings, "When you leave don't let the door hit your rear end." There is nothing sad or despondent here, no regret or yearning. There is some nice work on guitar. It sounds like the guy of this song will be okay. "You helped me forget/But I'm thinking clear again."
"Cities" comes on with some energetic work on guitar, and takes on a rhythm like a delightful dance. "Cities are flesh and cities are smoke/Cities are noise and cities are bones." To me the most interesting line is "Blame the cities for the change we allow." Perhaps it is because of these strange times we find ourselves in, when no one accepts responsibility or blame for anything, but that line stands out. I love the guitar work in the second half of this track. Scott Wenum adds some wonderful work on percussion. That's followed by "Magnolia Tree," which was written by Savannah Smith. Check out these lyrics: "It's a worn-out story takes the air out of my lungs/I'll explain away my days when loneliness became my drug." Wow, those are good lines. This song has a sweet, pretty sound, with some gorgeous harmonies. It's a positive and encouraging number, one that looks to a bright future. Joe Savage joins the trio on dobro, delivering some excellent stuff.
"Trouble" is a fun, lively number, moving at a good clip, making us feel like we're on the run. Peter J. Sands delivers some delicious work on organ on this one, and Josh Kaplan is on drums, that rhythm driving everything forward. "Somehow I'm in trouble now/Well, it may not be a sin/But I found hell again/I'm in trouble, I'm in trouble now." And as in any good country tale, someone's going to die here. But there is a playful aspect to it, all the same. This one was written by Barb Brynstad and Adam Levy. That's followed by "Hand-Me-Down Sadness." My girlfriend had read that stress suffered by someone can be inherited by that person's children, and actually stay in the family for three generations. I was thinking of this when I read this song's title. Could sadness work that way as well? If so, some folks I know are really up against it. "All the years of hand-me-down sadness/From one generation to the next/You try to move beyond it, kick it to the curb/But it's got its claws in you like a hex." This song also mentions a party having to end. That idea is certainly in the air these days, isn't it? I think this country's party has ended. This song was written by Adam Levy.
"Serious," which was written by Adam and Barb, is about that time when a relationship suddenly proves itself to be more serious than intended. The line that grabbed me the first time I listened to this song is "I know this ain't my stop, but I want to get off." This is a fun track. Some of the vocal work kind of reminds me of the best of the late-1970s Fleetwood Mac output (you know, once the girls joined the band). Peter J. Sands plays piano on this track, delivering some delicious work, especially that brief lead in the middle. "Why can't we go back to being friends?" That can work, you know. It did once for me, anyway. I also love these lines: "Don't need astrology to sort it out/I just need a parachute and I'll jump out." Then "Manitowoc" begins with some really nice guitar work that grabs us immediately. There is a sweet vibe to this song that is incredibly appealing. "Waiting for the end to start/Fever dreams on these concrete shores." Joe Savage adds some excellent stuff on pedal steel, that work contributing greatly to this song's overall sound and effect.
There is some interesting percussion to "When Love Reigns," Josh Kaplan on drums and percussion. "I've been around a long time, baby/Fires die, and hearts rearrange/All is fair game when love reigns." And after those lines there is a little rock and roll thing happening, something we might here from Roy Orbison, which is wonderful. These lines surprised me: "Machines will beat us at our games/They'll try to learn the secrets, but some things can't be explained." They surprised me because of the atmosphere of this song, which feels like it comes out of some wonderful past. Adam Schmidt plays pedal steel, and Peter J. Sands is on organ. That's followed by "Hungry Ghosts." There is a glorious intensity to its opening instrumental section. Then it shifts as the vocals come in. There is something of a 1960s influence heard here, especially to some of the guitar work. "We're hungry ghosts singing our sad love songs/We go remote when the connection is too strong/You went out lookin' for what we had all along/And I'll breathe a little lighter when you're gone." And I love this line: "Before we got all tangled in each other's strings." This song features a good bass line, and also some nice work on pedal steel by Adam Schmidt. It has a strong ending. This song, written by Barb Brynstad and Adam Levy, ended up being one of my favorites.
The disc's final listed track is "Solid State," a delicious country number. "This world is run on greed, mountains of corn/Factory machines, palm oil and soy beans/We got lost somewhere between the vaccum tubes and the slot machines." We got lost, indeed. But everything feels in its right place when I hear some wonderful guitar work like this. And the way their voices blend, you'll want to add your own voice. Don't be shy. Life's too short for that. There is a delightfully loose vibe to this one. The song ends, but there is still more than a minute to go on the track. After a bit of silence, we get a very short hidden track (actually hidden song, same track), which is the title track. Who hides the title track? Actually, I'm only assuming that's the title, for here are some of the lyrics: "Cowgirls and boys with no saddle/From New York City to Seattle/Looking good is half the battle/All hat, no cattle." It's a nice, lo-fi gem.
CD Track List
- Antietam
- Last Drink
- Cities
- Magnolia Tree
- Trouble
- Hand-Me-Down Sadness
- Serious
- Manitowoc
- When Love Reigns
- Hungry Ghosts
- Solid State
All Hat No Cattle was released on March 6, 2026.
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