Vic Chesnutt's third album, Drunk, was recorded before his second, West of Rome, was even released. But when Drunk dropped a year later, it was a very different beast, a prickly, cantankerous beast at that. It's his most difficult record, musically and otherwise. Just when you've found a delicate moment to latch onto, it squirms out of your hands and scratches you on its way down. This is all to say Drunk's a hell of a lot of ragged fun. As reissued by New West, Drunk gets the biggest sonic overhaul of these reissues. The sound is clearer and fuller, energizing the heavier tracks. The artwork has also been restored to Chesnutt's wishes: a sodden, orange, and frazzled-looking jester. More than the shadowy browns and blacks that adorned the old version, the new color scheme evokes the more aggressive contents within, like a giant burning sunrise when you've been stumbling around the neighborhood all night, casting inescapable light onto your sorry state. 2LP - Double 180 Gram Vinyl with Download.
