There's something about Pinegrove's sophmore album, technically their label debut, Cardinal that is pleaseingly alt-country. You remeber alt-country: a description used because no one could fathom Whiskeytown, Uncle Tupelo, and later Wilco, being made up of a bunch of indie fans that brought that love to country music. It's not as silly as nu metal, but it's close.
Pinegrove closely resemble Whiskeytown, they are both led by prolific songwriters, their songs are multilayered, and they refuse to be pigeon-holed in just one genre. Also like Whiskeytown, Pinegrove create a welcoming mood to listeners, with New Jeresy born frontman Evan Stephens Hall creating a arena of rye word-play, and whimsy that is grounded by the bands pleasant riffs. It's not a challenging listen, at a mere eight tracks, but it is more substantial than albums by peers like Real Estate, and recall Built to Spill at their most relaxed.
Pinegrove are a wonderful mix of all the bands that you think influenced them. Old Friends feels like and American Football track that's been turn up, Then Again sounds like the laconic cousin of The Gaslight Anthem, and Waveform has that big band intimacy of Wilco's quiter moments. The fact that Pinegrove can bring all these bands to mind and still not feel derivative is a small miracle, making Cardinal well worth your time.
