Battles turned quite a few heads with 2007’s Mirrored. Like Tortoise, the band took experimental prog rock and made it cool for the lo-fi/postpunk set.
Hard Bargain features the trio of Emmylou Harris, producer Jay Joyce, and multi-instrumentalist Giles Reaves alone in the studio. However, this isn’t a rustic, back-to-basics album. Rather, it has a pleasantly lush sound, made with the complete understanding that people come to hear Harris sing.
Named after the last single that Hank Williams released before his death, I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive is swamped in Steve Earle’s contemplations of mortality. His father died weeks after Earle began writing the album.