The Passing of the Night, Lojinx ****

Loping across prairies more usually found on T Bone Burnett soundtracks, The Lost Brothers have found their musical feet in earnest on their third album. The Passing of the Night was produced in Nashville by The Raconteurs' Brendan Benson, with jostling contributions from members of the Old Crow Medicine Show, Richmond Fontaine and others. The rattle and hum that propels this Tyrone/Meath duo of Oisín Leech and Mark McCausland south of the Mason-Dixon line lures the listener into a picaresque world where Gillian Welch, David Lynch and Richard Hawley influences collide with lonesome grace. Far Side is the standout, a ragged, bare-boned story of emotional turmoil, while Hey Miss Fannie, borrowed from Roy Orbison's back catalogue, is their sole cover. Lyrically, The Lost Brothers venture into complex terrain (incarceration, lost love). The key to their evolution lurks somewhere in the deep bluegrass, where pump organ, fiddle and mandolin shape their louche sound, with ample space for the listener to step inside their conjured worlds with ease. lostbrothersband.com

Download track: Far Side