WAGONS play the Horseshoe Tuesday (September 6). See listing. Rating: NNNN
Wagons’ poppy, soulful cow-punk is as clever as it is swaggerific. The Australian band shifts through genres – including psychedelic heavy rock – often enough to make you wonder if leader Henry Wagon has a personality disorder.
On their fifth album, the tour-tight troupe throws a few bars of funk into the beginning of Downlow before launching into the rest of the hook-filled Heartbreakersish opening track. A love of American music comes through on a raunchy, ridiculous tribute to Willie Nelson, but it’s during the heart-on-your-sleeve country songs (Moon Into The Sun, Daydreams) when Wagons’s Aussie delivery makes for beautiful results.
The band doesn’t choose between funny and serious, opting for generous amounts of both. The singalong choruses are brilliant, but some of the sillier material might be best experienced live.
Top track: Moon Into The Sun
