Eric Bachmann - To the Races *

I haven't followed Eric Bachmann at all since the Archers of Loaf broke up. So going to his myspace page and hearing two very folky tunes from this new album was a bit of a surprise. The last time I heard him sing was on a live Archers recording I have; his normally gravelly voice sounds extra gravelly. But I liked the new songs. As I get older I find I am grabbing albums like this more often, while the stacks of classic old stuff like Icky Mettle collect dust. Predicted rating for this one: 7.4. Actual rating: 6.9. Point differential: 0.5.