Joe Pug
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Rhythm Room
1019 E. Indian School Road
Phoenix, AZ 85014
Category: Bars/Clubs
Region: Central Phoenix
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While it's practically impossible for a white dude with an acoustic guitar and harmonica to achieve anything genuinely surprising, it's nearly as difficult for such an artist to achieve anything approaching genuine. Joe Pug's "I Do My Father's Drugs," from his excellent 2008 Nation of Heat EP, is one of those precious cases. Utilizing open chords and a cadence on loan from "The Times They Are A-Changin'," the song succeeds not by breaking new ground, but by mining familiar soil so well, etching existential dilemma with the grace and poise that only comes from measured study of all the right John Prine LPs. Lines such as, "If I return with eyes half-open, don't ask me where I was, I do my father's drugs" may read trite on paper, but Pug delivers them with enough grit and soul to render them believable. In Phoenix, we have no shortage of vaguely country, pseudo-folk singer-songwriters skulking about, but I'd suggest they check out Pug for a few pointers on how to get it right. The right vintage Wrangler shirt and cowboy boots do not an old soul make. It's about somehow finding the conviction to take such a tired act and tap into what makes traditions sound true.
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