Photos by James Blücher
Story by AG Sherman

While it is becoming obvious to everyone that Baltimore touts one of the most vibrant and interesting FolkPunk scenes in the US, surprises still arise from time to time. One such pleasant rarity gradually reveals itself in The Legend of Hardy Foster, the new release from The Baltimore String Felons.

Somehow simultaneously clear and tinny, urban and Appalachian, this much-anticipated inaugural offering imparts the darker side of Doomgrass. While those familiar with live performances by the Felon Family may be expecting an exhilarating, danceable party disc, “Legend” blossoms to offer slower, even sludgy acoustic fare. Starting off quick with the driven Vandal Blues, a track which perfectly captures the mood of an escape. The tone then drops abruptly into the Jarmuschian murk of Down By The Law.

Shorter, spunkier passages occasionally resurface throughout, only to be drowned again in beautiful, syrupy dirge strains. Fully half the songs here approach eight minutes in length, but even the frenzied “Hot Dice,” clocking in at less than two, relates the manic desperation of gambling in a manner at once relatable and sickening. As at the Felons’ boisterous gigs, convivial stomping remains appropriate, but the listener is now acutely aware that we are all stomping towards annihilation.

Banjo, mandolin, fiddle, and saw all make appearances, raising the usual questions about the authenticity of those performing “traditional” music, but the Felons are not tourists in this world. This album crafts a realistic portrait of Post-Industrial America; tense, gritty, and dangerous. While they will certainly continue to shine at the inclusive house parties which incubated their sound, here the Felons invite us to experience blackness. The Legend of Hardy Foster is perhaps best heard alone.

Photos by James Blücher
Story by AG Sherman