"Real" is the word that most people attach to Tim Barry's music, and with good reason. In his folk-oriented solo material, the former Avail singer spins tales of heartbreak, crime, poverty, and train-hopping, all of which have been a part of his life at various points. But Mr. Barry himself apparently feels that he's not quite real enough yet, because he's named his newest record 40 Miler, which is a derogatory slang word for someone who hops trains for only short distances, a poser, in essence. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, he explained, "For 20 years, I have toured and illegally ridden freight trains, but I've never been truly committed to either. I am a poser – a 40 Miler." It's hard for fans to justify that claim, though, because from the outside, Tim Barry's resume reads like that of a grizzled, road-weary veteran. He made his name with hardcore punk legends Avail, and with this latest release, he's up to his fifth solo album.
If you've heard his previous albums full of straightforward guitar playing and uncompromisingly honest lyrics delivered in his Virginia accent, you know what kind of ride you're in for here. 40 Miler is not a drastic deviation from those earlier records, but the instrumentation is more full and varied. Instead of the spare arrangements of his early release Rivanna Junction, 40 Miler is fleshed out with piano, fiddle, harmonica, drums and even some electric guitars here and there. Make no mistake though, this is not a punk record with a little twang to it, this is a bona fide folk record, with tinges of country and bluegrass to give it even more of a sepia-toned rural atmosphere.
The songs are of a wider variety of tones and tempos than we've heard from Barry before, as well. He's put some rowdier numbers in with the weepers, and as usual, he blends bitter and sweet together with a little cutting sarcasm and outright invective. Barry is also one of the few artists recording today who can record songs about hopping freight trains and not come off sounding like a rich kid with a Guthrie fetish (see the photos he occasionally puts on his twitter account for proof of his railyard adventures). The railroad song "Driver Pull" alone is worth the price of admission on 40 Miler, with lyrics so vivid that you can almost smell the rust and grease. in fact, lyrical gems abound on this record, like these lines from the title track, which may well be Barry's mission statement: "I'd rather stay broke and play fake-ass shows/Move with heart, sing from your souls/If you can't play, then dance instead/Music should sound like escape, not rent."
The extra instruments and song variety are great, but what really makes this record a winner is that at it's core, it's still Tim Barry giving you three chords and the hard truths that he's found after all those lonely highway miles.
-Review by TZARATHUSTRA
