Bobby Bare Jr.

Several rising scions of outlaw country singers are at least as rebellious as their famous fathers. Neither Hank Williams III nor Shooter Jennings fits the traditional Nashville mold, and Bobby Bare Jr. is even more willing to leave tradition in the dust. On charmingly twisted discs such as 2002's Young...

By Michael Roberts

October 12, 2006

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Several rising scions of outlaw country singers are at least as rebellious as their famous fathers. Neither Hank Williams III nor Shooter Jennings fits the traditional Nashville mold, and Bobby Bare Jr. is even more willing to leave tradition in the dust. On charmingly twisted discs such as 2002's Young Criminals' Starvation League and 2004's From the End of Your Leash, both recorded for the insurgent Bloodshot imprint, he used C&W as flavoring for indie rock made up of equal parts sloppiness and subversion. The Longest Meow, issued in September, replicates this formula with the assistance of kindred spirits from the other side of the musical tracks; guests include Carl Broemel, Patrick Hallahan and Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and Lambchop's Deanna Varagona. The disc, which was reportedly cut live in just eleven hours, isn't without the occasional clunker, yet numbers such as "The Heart Bionic," in which Junior boasts about having "electric blood," are rowdy and reckless in all the right ways. Those are the Bare facts.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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