Album Review: Dolly Shine 'Walkabout'

-Tara

“Disciple of the highway” sings Zack McGinn on Dolly Shine’s current single, “Rattlesnake,” one of the nine tracks that comprise the Stephenville, Texas’s band’s [which also includes Wesley Hall, Johnny Goodson, Jerrod Flusche, and Ben Hussey] latest release, Walkabout. Visualized as a concept album, the project is a wanderer’s diary of nine well-crafted tales dealing with relationships, murder, desolation, and lonesomeness. From the gritty opener, “Blackbird,” which comes out guns a blazing, Walkabout’s songs are candid and uncomplicated, emphasizing the quintet’s tight musicianship and a production that while polished, retains an edgy sheen.

From the magnetically seductive and gritty vibe of the tale of a murderous drifter in “Hitchhikin’” to the detailed, seedy account of meth and murder in the disquieting “Snakeskin Boots:” “Found him dead floating in Red River, somebody robbed him just to get their quiver, shot in head so I don’t think it hurt to drop him in the dirt,” Walkabout seamlessly, and successfully, blends varied styles such as country, rock, Americana and bluegrass, on story songs from the highway as well as tunes that deal with the varied aspects of relationships.

But there are no sugary sweet tales of happily ever after here, instead, there are troubled, complicated - and completely realistic - relationships in abundance. From “Come Out Swingin’” about an encounter with an old flame where he soon realizes “You got a death grip on my heart but it sure as hell won’t last long,” to the unapologetically frank “Closing Time” where he refuses to take a lover back because “I love you woman, but I hate you and I can’t live with your new way of life/Can’t find a reason to believe you/You never leave alone at closing time” and “Anywhere Close to Fine” which is infiltrated with heartbreak, “I didn’t know about the bleeding until the heartache came from you” the songs, brimming with fiddle and memorable melodies, are refreshing in their honesty.

The journey, emotional and literal, concludes with “Twist The Knife” which deals with that adage of being old enough to know better, yet still going back for more - even though you’re fully aware there will be “bridges burned and hearts [get] bruised” - and the thoughtful “Old Flame” which finds both resignation and acceptance at the end of a love that’s toxic. “Loving don’t come easy/And leavings twice as hard/Lay it all on the line sometimes/All you end up with are broken hearts and scars.”

The culmination of the band’s growth, both personally and professionally, Walkabout is a journey that you will want to join them on, both now, and for the foreseeable future. 

---