Thirteen Cities

"Thirteen Cities" follows the elegant, stripped down "The Fitzgerald" (2005) and the alt-country classic "Post To Wire" (2004), both of which have been declared modern-day masterpieces. Producer JD Foster (Dwight Yoakam, Green On Red, Richard Buckner, Calexico, Laura Cantrell) enlisted instrumental contributions from Giant Sand's Howe Gelb and Calexico's Joey Burns and Jacob Valenzuela, as well as multi-instrumentalist Paul Brainard. The result is an album of sonic depth and diversity brave enough to support songwriter Willy Vlautin's nourish, narrative lyrics. Reviewers worldwide are comparing Vlautin's storytelling to greats such as Carver, Steinbeck, and Bukowski, giving credence to his simple, heartfelt style.