This came out in 2003 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
They’re over The Wall at last.
After spending the past few years rebuilding Pink Floyd’s dystopian rock opus into a hillbilly epic (and then touring it all over creation), Ontario alt-roots rebels Luther Wright And The Wrongs have finally put together a disc of original material — their first in four years. Even better, it turns out to be an album worth waiting for. Guitar Pickin’ Martyrs is a strong, solid set of equal parts heart and smarts, neatly balancing traditional instrumentation and melody with contemporary songcraft and lyrics. Anchored by authentic two-step grooves and bittersweet vocals, these 13 songs are decorated with plenty of silken fiddles, shimmery pedal steel, plucky banjos, strummy acoustic guitars, twangy licks and even the occasional soaring yodel. Even so, nobody’s going to mistake tracks like Broken F—in’ Heart and Devious Dissembler for old Carter Family cuts, you know? But folks who like their country music with a razor’s edge won’t find much wrong with these Martyrs.
