Happiness Bastards in Bloomington, MN

Reunions are as inevitable for
the Black Crowes
as separations. Bonds may weaken but they never break: family is strong enough to weather changes in fortune and fashion. And, unlike
revival of the late 2000s, the band's 2020s return makes clear this is a family affair: drummer
Steve Gorman
, who published a memoir while the band was away, was not invited back, even though he was the only member besides the brothers Robinson to play in every previous incarnation of the band.
Gorman
's absence can be felt on
Happiness Bastards
, the band's first collection of new material since
Before the Frost¿Until the Freeze
, a 2009 double-album recorded live at
Levon Helm
's barn in Woodstock. Supported by the band's touring lineup,
don't swing as boldly or loosely on
, a decision that emphasizes how this is an unapologetic back-to-basics move from the veteran rockers. Working with
Jay Joyce
-- a Nashville-based producer primarily known for his collaborations with
Eric Church
and
Miranda Lambert
--
keep things tight and lean, zipping through ten cuts in under 40 minutes, only taking the time to stretch out when
Lainey Wilson
is invited into the studio to duet with
Chris Robinson
on the gospel-inflected "Wilted Rose." Song for song,
is the hardest-rocking
Crowes
record since
By Your Side
, but where that 1999 affair crackled with defiance, this 2024 LP is relaxed in a fashion that suits a band settled into middle age. Which isn't to say the
don't hit hard here: with its slippery slide guitar and insistent thump, "Bedside Manners" gets proceedings off to a careening start and "Bleed It Dry" ranks among their heaviest blues numbers. Beneath these flourishes of noise lies a hint of playfulness -- witness "Flesh Wound," whose chatterbox chorus nods to the
New York Dolls
-- and an intent focus on spending no longer on a song than necessary. For a band that often got lost in a hippie haze, this all-business approach pays off great dividends: it's easy to hear how the Robinsons are ideal collaborators, tempering each other's excesses and accentuating their shared love for the best of classic rock. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine