You stride down a dirt road between wooden buildings. A tumbleweed rolls across the path that you walk. The roads are filled with people in search of an energy, an unbridled sense of life you can only find in places such as these. You push through the crowd, and stumble through a creaky door into a smoke-filled room. The room is stuffed with waiting bodies in various stages of inebriation. You take a seat at the bar just as the band takes the stage . . .

There’s something to be said about a band that wear their influences so prominently on their sleeves, and still manage to invoke a new energy from the classic sounds. Dos is the newest full-length from Los Colognes, a group of Chicago-native, Nashville-transplanted instrumentalists that conjure the freewheeling spirits of legendary southern musicians, and integrate those iconic flavors into their own breed of marvelous songwriting.

These guys spent a considerable amount of time refining their craft as a backing band for Caitlin Rose, so there’s a level of tightness to their playing that’s uncommon to find. Southern-tinged jamming is this group’s forte, and they anchor the starry-eyed soloing with some wonderfully catchy hooks. Many individuals hear the term “jam band” and head for the hills, but I urge you to stick around and give this gem an honest shot.

The intricate-but-laid-back approach of Dire Straits permeates through a lot of the songs, and especially on highlight “Golden Dragon Hut.” The Grateful Dead’s sense of wide-eyed wonderment and sonic exploration is everywhere. This is an accessible record about diving head-first into the unknown, with the trust that life will continue on when nothing is certain. If you’re seeking jam-heavy southern americana, this album is for you.

– stasi (@stasisphere)