Emperors of Wyoming
Emperors of Wyoming
Proper Records / Hillbilly Digital
Like Americans have always done, this band looks to the west, yet remains planted firmly in the Midwest. Emperors of Wyoming lean more toward West Allis, Wisconsin than Cody, Wyoming, and this foursome finds their inspiration in the road houses and honky-tonk juke boxes of a time gone by. The doubleplusgood cut here is “Avalanche Girl” – she’s crossed the bridges of Madison County and taken a man’s heart or two along the way. With fuzzed and reverberated guitars, the sound is complex without getting muddy, and Phil Davis’s vocals drip with irony. In “I’m Your Man,” he’s sings like that’s not true anymore. He’ll be there to hold her hand, assuming she’ll have him back, but that ain’t certain. “Corn Field Palace” is the West Allis song. Here his girl has an SUV and 40 acres of DeKalb’s best hybrid, and I can tell it’s a fantasy. I used to live there, and unless they plowed up the Allis Chalmers plant site, the only corn in that town comes from the grocery store. So, I’m nit-picking; the sound is what matters and it’s solid Americana, and if the band wants to fantasize about resurfacing Milwaukee, so be it.
Emperors of Wyoming: http://emperorsofwyoming.com/
