If the name wasn’t enough to tell you otherwise, Reverend Peyton and his musical collective are not a band to be taken too seriously. Comprised of a genuine Reverend along with his wife and brother, they play a jaunty mix of country and blues, which whether you’re smiling with them or laughing at them, is sure to widen that big ol’ gap between your cheeks.
Hailing from Brown County, Indiana (a county with a population of just 832), their small-town upbringing has defined their sound. Steel string guitars and washboards are all present and correct, acting as an appropriate backdrop for the Reverend’s booming, deep-south vocals. The likes of Walmart killed the country store and Everybody’s getting paid but me are great examples of the toe-tapping ditties they produce, but in all honesty, it can all be just a bit too much at times. Quirky, yes, but some tracks, like John Hughes and lead single Mama’s Friend Potatoes sound like the band are trying to caricature themselves.
Overall, this isn’t a bad album. It’s a hell of a lot of fun, and there are some genuinely cracking tunes here. The only problem is, in an age when people are more and more reluctant to mix up their listening habits, this is likely to be a novelty one-time-listen for most (myself included).
Andy R