Ever since ZZ Top signed with RCA, they fitfully tried to break free of
the synthesized blues that once was their savior but quickly became a
straightjacket. Like any addict, it was hard for them to quit that
processed, sequenced sound cold turkey, so they weaned themselves off the
robo-boogie, sometimes relapsing and adding too many synths to mix, other
times breaking loose with some credible boogie. Apart from the dreadful
misstep of 1999's XXX, they showed signs of life on all their RCA albums,
and their fourth, 2003's long-delayed Mescalero, is no exception to the
rule. Billy Gibbons' fat guitar tone really has some presence here, at
least on some of the album, and there are enough rhythm tracks not
performed to a didactic click track to provide some real swing. There are
even moments that suggest Gibbons' songwriting chops might be returning,
such as the closing "Liquor," the rampaging instrumental "Crunchy," and
the lithe "What Would You Do." On these cuts, along with a cover of ...
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