The Last Kings of Babylon (Thirty Tigers, 2025)

Twenty-five years on and with 11 studio albums, Oklahoma's Jason Boland & The Stragglers keep rolling. Tapping the iconic producer, Lloyd Maines, who produced their debut, the band cut "The Last Kings of Babylon" live in the studio in just two days. With its share of rave-ups, autobiographical tales and a few doses of social commentary, the band continues to prove not only why they've endured, but that they keeping pushing forward, avoiding staleness.

Boland's deep baritone evokes Waylon Jennings. His versatile band delivers country, bluegrass, rock n' roll, folk and even shades of punk at times, blending acoustic with electric. While Boland sings leads and plays rhythm guitar, he's accompanied by Grant Tracy (bass), Nick Ceora (fiddle, mandolin, tenor guitar, banjo), AJ Slaughter (pedal steel, electric, and resonator guitars), Jake Lynn (drums) and Andrew Bair (keyboards).

The swaying opener "The Next to Last Hank Williams," a portrait of a road worn musician, not unlike Boland, encapsulates the struggle - "Well every generation has it figured/Then in the middle of the game the rules have changed/We all agree the mystery is bigger/Meanwhile that money stays the same/And the search is on for anyone to blame."

In the rollicking "Truest Colors" Boland indicts the music business while pondering karma. In the country ballad "Take Me Back to Austin," Boland nods both to his wife and favorite city. The fiddle driven "High Time" is like a cross between funk and bluegrass as Boland basks in the joy of freedom while hailing the girl who brought the weed.

Power chords usher in "One Law at a Time," a cautionary outlaw anthem while "Farmall" has the band in a rambunctious hoe-down mode as Boland cynically wraps social, political, and technology rants into the story of his dad's vintage tractor. In the slow waltzing "Irish Goodbye," Boland favors the the quiet exit in social situations with brimming mandolin and piano colors.

Boland and the band turn Jason Eady's "Drive" into perfect late night road trip escapism. The barely controlled chaos of Randy Crouch's "Ain't No Justice" has the band taking plenty of chances yet the gorgeous cover of Jimmy LaFave's "Buffalo Return" closes on an optimistic note. The album has great writing, pacing and superb musicianship, making it one of their best.