Over the past six years, Cracker has released a bit less than a handful of albums to roughly the same response: first, a legion of avid fans greet the album with high praise. They note that at a time when critics are lamenting the death (or at least the long slumber) of rock, Cracker has been churning out a heady concoction of southern rock and alternative sensibility. In turn, some still- disgruntled Camper Van Beethoven holdouts blast frontman David Lowery as a sellout. Camper, whose utterly unique sound was the first to be termed "alternative" back in the '80s, pointed its ironic, sarcastic and arrogant finger at the world. When Lowery left to make simpler roots- rock with Cracker in 1992, that unforgiving finger pointed back at him. Evidenced by a single or two garnering varying degrees of airplay, Camper Van Beethoven fans will note that Lowery's new sound is a bit too radio- friendly. Finally, the critics remain generally reserved, although usually more than a little positive.

So, who's right-- the avid Cracker junkies, Camper sentimentalists, or that band of dapper and intelligent folks we like to call music critics? Well, while exercising the restraint of a professional critic, I'm siding with the Cracker fans. Cracker has been purveying a unique brand skewed Americana-- a bluesy roots- rock with an off- kilter swagger that, unfortunately, still has a hard time escaping the long shadow of Lowery's reputation or the constant demand for renewal of his indie cred.

Gentleman's Blues, the band's fourth full- length release, marks a return to form for the boys from Virginia. After experimenting with everything from Pixies- influenced alternative rock to a Ray Davies ballad on The Golden Age, Cracker settles back down South for this 17-song affair that mostly contemplates life in a band and aging. The album's unlisted final track recalls Janis Joplin's Texas- blues wail while more than a hint of R+B is added to standard Lowery rave-ups "Seven Days" and "Been Around the World." While "Wild One," a reaction to his young niece's tantrums, is an all out rocker, Lowery also shows his continued mastery of the ballad on "Lullabye."

But the real surprise of the album is guitarist Johnny Hickman. While a few of his songs grace each of the band's earlier releases, his writing here (aside from the throwaway "Hold of Myself") is his best. "Trials and Tribulations" is a Stones country ramble, and the slide solo ripping through the bitter "Wedding Day" is a thing of musical beauty. Cracker is once again joined by bassist Bob Rupe, whose work with the Silos and Gutterball clearly influence the band's down- home sound on Gentleman's Blues.

While some Camper faithful will be appeased by the inclusion of the amusement park folly "I Want Out of the Circus," others will continue to wrongfully challenge Lowery and company for adopting a mainstream sound. And while the band's music may not be as experimental or inventive as Camper Van Beethoven's, it is most certainly as unique.

-Neil Lieberman

"Seven Days"

[Real Audio Stream]