Born on Flag Day

Deer Tick: John McCauley (vocals, guitar, harmonica, electric piano); Andrew Tobiassen (guitar); Chris Ryan (bass instrument, bass guitar); Dennis Ryan (drums, background vocals).
Personnel: Dennis Michael Ryan (vocals, drums, percussion); Liz Isenberg (vocals); Andrew Grant Tobiassen (guitar).
Recording information: Yellow House Studios, Baltimore, MD (09/2008).
Photographer: Sayard Egan.
Unknown Contributor Role: John McCauley.
More focused than its predecessor, WAR ELEPHANT, Deer Tick's BORN ON FLAG DAY is comprised of ten songs in the straight-up stylings of indie rock and Americana. Vocalist John Joseph McCauley III's singing is still raspy (like a down-home version of Axl Rose) but here, he and his crew flesh out their woodsy sensibilities with a larger scope. The sound is bigger, and the hooks are more palpable. By sacrificing grit, some of the charm that made the debut a success is lost along the way, but the sleeker production is only a minor setback. Even with a heavy helping of spiteful, desperate lyrics delivered straight from the bottom of the bottle, the sparkling production makes Deer Tick seem like a likely crossover to the mainstream, specifically those who love a more mature, NPR sound.