Always Say Please and Thank You (Alternative Tentacles, 2000)

It couldn't come as a surprise to anyone that Slim Cessna, the yodeling, guitaring front man for the raucous hillbilly band he calls the Auto Club, was once a fixture in punk bands. The kind of pent-up energy and fervor that he brings to his country/gospel howlathons perfectly reflect Cessna's musical heritage without actually referencing it.

Looking like a mutant blend of John Lithgow and Stringbean and Weird Al Yankovic, Cessna doesn't so much sing as he does preach his third album overall, and first for punk indie Alternative Tentacles. With no trouble at all, Cessna's stage becomes his pulpit, and his sermon is full of pure country, evolutionary gospel and bluegrass, and some good old fashioned cowboy songs. Don't be put off by the label, just take a chance on this amazingly energetic example of genre hopping at its best.