Scott H. Biram

Few of us get creamed by a speeding 18-wheeler and live to tell about it. Even fewer of us take that near-death experience and use it to fuel our signature brand of devilish lo-fi blues-punk. But, hey, that’s Scott H. Biram for you — a down ‘n’ dirty East Texan whose infectious, doom-infused ballads suggest a wily musical apparition not quite of this world. In 2003, Biram was two self-released albums out of the gate when his unscheduled pas de deux with the 18-wheeler put a decided hitch in his one-man performance style (hell, the guy’s rhythm section is his left foot — it wasn’t like he had the limbs to spare). One month later, he was back on stage at Austin’s Continental Club, rockin’ out despite two broken legs and an IV tube in his arm. After his subsequent Rehabilitation Blues EP, Biram released a final self-published disc, The Dirty Old One Man Band, in 2004 before signing on with Chicago’s Bloodshot Records. His latest album, Something’s Wrong/Lost Forever, is more polished than his old stuff but just as tough and pitiless — like a big rig on a slick highway, it plows right into you.