All Relationships Are Doomed to Fail
The Meat Purveyors broke up after the 1999 release ofMore Songs About Buildings and Cows, but the Austin quartet couldn't stay away.All Relationships Are Doomed to Failis a welcome return, and from the disc's first note it's clear that the layoff hasn't hurt a bit. Never a vocal powerhouse, Jo Walston succeeds with spunk and charm, and she's swept along by the crack team of Bill Anderson (guitar), Pete Stiles (mandolin), and Cherilyn diMond (bass and backing vocals). They're in fine, frenzied form on cuts like "Hey Little Sister," "Truckers Speed," and a cover ofRatt's '80s metal hit "Round and Round," all of which raise a cloud of dust and probably a few eyebrows at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Stringed Instruments. No mere speed freaks, they can also take things down a notch, whether with a campy cover (Abba's "S.O.S.") or a straight waltz ("2:00 A.M.," "Circus Clown").--Anders Smith Lindall