from: SwampLand.com

Grayson Capps & The Stumpknockers
Rott-N-Roll

By James Calemine

Rott-N-Roll, Grayson Capps’ third disc, sounds like gut-bucket, shitkicker electric blues. Capps’ mode of operandi abides in his ability to tell a story in song. Recorded in his home studio in Franklin, Tennessee, Rott-N-Roll showcases Capps’ storytelling and The Stumpknockers mercurial backwater musical landscape.

Born and raised in Alabama, Capps attended Tulane University on a theater scholarship, but his music earned him a spot opening for Keith Richards and The Replacements. Filmmaker Shainee Gabel adapted Capps’ father’s unpublished book—Off Magazine Street—into film starring John Travolta and the beautiful Scarlett Johansson called A Love Song For Bobby Long. Capps wrote four songs for the soundtrack, including the title track. He also made a cameo appearance in the film.

Each of these 13 songs tells a vivid story. “Back To The Country” evokes some backyard torch song that kicks off the evening. A red-eyed message lurks in the lyrics: ‘Comin' back to Amsterdam, a long way from Birmingham, Alabama/Coffee shops and red light whores, devil’s always at your door’ sets the tone. “Arrowhead” stands as such a strong composition that it transcends category; Delta blues or Traditional country. Into the second song on the disc, by the time the female chorus begins, the listener realizes these songs carry an emotional resonance (click here to read full review at SwampLand.com...).