To those unfamiliar with the Drive-By Truckers [ tickets ] catalog, to compare the band's last four-album stretch to the likes of The Rolling Stones and Stevie Wonder at their consecutive '70s album peak may seem like rock 'n' roll heresy. If so, brand me a heretic.

Not unlike those two legends, "A Blessing and a Curse" find the Truckers once again delivering yet another stellar batch of music in the form of raw, imaginative Southern rock.

Already comprised of two strong songwriters in Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley, the band, after the 2002 release of its breakthrough album, "Southern Rock Opera," added additional guitarist-songwriter Jason Isbell to the fold. This combination has proved a seemingly limitless artistic wellspring for the band to draw from.

The album's opener and first single, "Feb 14," finds Hood ruminating on the aftermath of a less-than-perfect romance. Standard rock -'n' roll fare, except that Hood puts his undeniable touch on the well-worn subject matter, and in doing so, owns it. Contributions from both Cooley and Isbell round out the album, touching on subjects not at all inherently "Southern," which is something the band states they wanted to achieve with this album. No matter the ZIP code, the band, once again, achieves big here.