Jay Farrar's re-tooled Son Volt [ tickets ] follows up 2005's Guthrie-inspired "Okemah and the Melody of Riot" with an even stronger effort in "The Search," an album whose leadoff track, the piano-driven "Slow Hearse," sounds like a coda.

Not unlike Neil Young, Farrar has long straddled the line between acoustic and hushed, pensive ballads and all-out, electric-guitar attacks. Here, continuing where "Okemah" left off, the two extremes are married, and result in a few of Farrar's strongest single songs in years--solo or otherwise.
While "Okemah," in hindsight, was a pleasant enough listen, "The Search"--buoyed by tracks such as "Methamphetamine" and "Highways and Cigarettes"--sticks to your gut long after the curtain closes.

Unlike his former Uncle Tupelo bandmate Jeff Tweedy, Farrar has never felt the need to reinvent the wheel. "The Search," as a whole, excels in its simplicity.