The Mulligan Brothers, an emerging band from Mobile, Alabama, proves that good stories and lyrics still matter in music and well-written songs don’t need a catchy chorus or a happy ending to win over an audience or to be played over and over. The band’s debut album, “The Mulligan Brothers” is a whole album of straightforward narratives with concise, original lines and lead singer Ross Newell’s honest, sincere voice cutting to the heart in songs that seem as much to himself as to the listener.
The lyrics set the songs apart but it is the rhythm of Greg DeLuca, the string melodies of Gram Rea, and Ben Leininger’s suitcase bass that grab attention as their music crosses borders between folk rock, Americana, and country. “There was a temptation to add more instruments during production of the album but we wanted to reproduce the songs on stage every night,” says Rea. “If we can’t play it live, we didn’t play it on the album, and that shaped our sound.”
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