Bury Me in My Boots

Photographer: David McClister.
It took the Cadillac Three some time to finish their second album, Bury Me in My Boots. Its first single, "The South" -- a bro-country singalong celebration featuring Florida Georgia Line and Dierks Bentley -- came out in 2013, a full three years before Bury Me in My Boots finally hit the stores, and each of those subsequent years saw a new single: "Party Like You," another bro-country stomper, in 2014, followed by "White Lightning" in the new year, a ballad that has nothing to do with George Jones' classic of the same name. Such activities suggest the Cadillac Three had some difficulty finding either their voice or their audience, and it's true the album alternates between bro country, silly summertime party tunes, and a heavy dose of southern rock. The Cadillac Three demonstrate versatility, but they are at their best when they dig into hard, churning southern rock spiked with a hint of U2. These moments comprise nearly half the album -- the slow sludge of the title track, the churning "Drink Like You," the bittersweet "Runnin' Red Lights" -- and they not only indicate the Cadillac Three may be better on-stage than on record, they point the direction the trio should pursue next time. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine