Lukas Nelson & the Promise of the Real kick off
Turn Off the News, Build a Garden with "Bad Case," a pop tune powered by an incandescent jangle of riffs that evokes memories of
the Byrds, or perhaps
R.E.M. It's an appropriate opening salvo for a record that is lithe and bright, functioning in some ways as the flipside to the group's 2017 major-label debut for
Fantasy. Where that eponymous album tilted toward burlier Americana and weathered country,
Turn Off the News, Build a Garden is relaxed and open-hearted. Working its way through rockers made to bask in the sunshine,
Turn Off the News has its share of barbed protest -- most evident on the second version of the title track, an acoustic rendition which ends with
Nelson cussing -- the record winds up delivering on its title promise by offering organic music designed to be a sustainable resource. Taking advantage of the opportunities that have come their way since they teamed up with
Neil Young -- opportunities that included contributions to
Bradley Cooper's Oscar-winning 2018 remake of A Star Is Born -- the Promise of the Real do sound bigger than they did in their earliest days, and they sound wilier, too. Unlike a lot of Americana bands,
Nelson and co. have omnivorous tastes and a sense of humor, a combination that results in slow-grooving R&B numbers, sun-kissed pop, rangy rockers, and a persistent good vibe. In troubled times, the band have managed to deliver an album filled with optimism, and that's a remarkable feat. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
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