All the Great Aviators Agree

Scotland Barr and the Slow Drags play what’s become a traditional form of alt-country, preferring the sound of a band playing live in a room over the glitzy touches that a modern recording studio offers. Not that there’s anything “lo-fi” about this well-recorded album. But one can hear the grit in Scotland Barr’s whiskey-soaked voice and the guitars, pianos and pedal steel each take the spotlight with an experienced ensemble’s benevolence. This communal atmosphere creates an image of this Portland, Oregon quintet sitting together in a modest room listening intently to each other and enthusiastically chiming in on harmonies that could be the Band in classic Americana mode. From the album’s opening tune, “Fall Hard,” where it’s offered that “Liquor makes for liars,” to the slow unfolding drama of “Heart of Rome” where the singer visits the Vatican and admits, “I left your picture at the gate, in case they need another saint,” Barr knows how to wring out the pathos of the moment.