Gob Iron

With a handful of underwhelming solo records and the drawn-out demise of Son Volt, Jay Farrar's last half-decade has been awfully uninspired -- just song after song cut from the same dreary fabric that has resulted in so much monotonous blue-collar alt-country. Gob Iron, Farrar's venture with Aders Parker, is the first sign of a pulse in quite some time -- ironic, considering that the unifying theme of the band's new album is mortality. When Farrar opens with "Death's Black Train Is Coming," the record blossoms with unaffected ease, and his slide-guitar treatment of "East Virginia Blues" has enough high lonesome to be placed alongside definitive renditions by Ramblin' Jack and the Stanley Brothers. Parker's contributions -- especially "Hills of Mexico" and "Little Girl and Dreadful Snake" -- have an equally tall pour of anguish, employing spare instrumentation and simple vocal harmonies to poignant ends. By the time the record closes with Farrar's full-band rendering of "Buzz & Grind," it's vigorous enough to bring our faith in him back to life, too.