Ctrl. Alt. Country review (Belgium)

"From Milwaukee, WI, the album Built with Bones by Christian Williams reached us recently. He describes what he does on that album as 'Gothic Country.' And what is that exactly? Very sober stories about restless souls, mortality and the dark side of life and love, by the man himself all on his own. He doesn't need much more than an old Martin-guitar, a banjo and his own sonorous baritone. And the result is 13 very special, pleasing, pretty, sad songs. Makes us think of the material of the late Man in Black in his later days. Probably not music for everyone, but still..."
(3/5 - Just Plain Good Stuff)
- Benny Metten (translated by Monique), Ctrl. Alt. Country

Miles of Music review

"Christian Williams has stories to tell. Williams' baritone – a shade less menacing than the Handsome Family's Brett Sparks – delivers each song like a sermon, simply and minimally accompanied by guitar and the occasional saloon piano. His Southern Gothic tales read like short stories of good and evil... each relying on the other to exist."
– Jeff Weiss, Miles of Music

Smother Magazine review

"I thought I had heard of it all when there was country fused with hip-hop. Now gothic rock meets country head on. Christian Williams writes Southern flavored music inspired by gothic literature, dark foreboding thoughts of love, and the Book of Revelations. His music is stripped down acoustic folk that reminds you of the original Hank Williams. Old-time country pop is a lost art form and I’m glad to see a young man bringing it back."
- J-Sin, Smother Magazine

mixtapes|heartbreaks review

It's artists like Christian Williams that have made it so I can no longer truthfully say 'I hate country.' Previously I wouldn't have touched anything close to country music with a ten-foot pole, but my hardened heart has found a place for the "classic country" sound. I blame Walk the Line.

Williams' latest release, Built With Bones, is a "gothic country" album filled with earnest songs that tell stories of love, death, temptation, murder, execution, and the end of the world.

The first track, "You Ain't Exempt", sets the tone of the record. A battered baritone, an acoustic guitar, and a story from Death's point of view reveal Williams' knack for clever lyrics ("I'm the end of the line / the caboose of your life...") and engaging stories.

Each track on the record tells a new story, with Williams using everything from saloon-style piano, six-stringed banjo, and an autoharp to transport the listener to the Old West without ever becoming hokey.

"Red" is the most memorable track on the album, telling a tale of adultery that leads to murder. The banjo creates an eerie and uneasy feeling which is further added to by Williams doubling himself in whisper with each use of the word "red." If I had been listening to this in the dark I would have had to turn on the light, and I mean that in the most complimentary way.

Another standout is "The Long Drop" which juxtaposes the story of a man's execution with beautiful chord changes that clash with the story that's being told. The song ends with the clap of the trap door swinging open, leading to the narrator's demise at the end of a rope. The effect was as sudden and unsettling as the end of Ambrose Bierce's An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge.

Built With Bones is not entirely built on the matter of scary campfire tales; "Never the Widow" tells of a woman's unfaltering devotion and "Something Like Love" could easily be altered into a set of non-traditional wedding vows.

If you've previously sworn off country, this is a good album to get your feet wet with. If nothing else you'll hear a few good stories you haven't before.

mixtapesheartbreaks.com

Kind words

"A fire and brimstone country troubadour ... feels like a good Southern novel, even though he's from Wisconsin."
- A.N. Smith, crime novelist

"Built With Bones is a trip deep into the prairie where the forces of good and evil duel through the details of each song's haunting and melodic beauty. Christian has a firm understanding that without evil, there can be no good and vice versa. The song titles read like short stories, and each song delivers its promise of true gothic American storytelling, the old-fashioned way."
– Slackeye Slim, fellow teller of dark tales

"Christian Williams describes his mixture of acoustic guitar, banjo and storytelling with a dark side as Gothic country music.The Gothic here meaning songs that paint a similarly parched vision (unless there's a flood) to Two Gallants (without the surplus verses), Nick Cave (sans piano) and also Johnny Cash's American series."
- Howard, Lonesome Music

"Gothy country more brooding than Johnny Cash covering 'Hurt.'"
- Kenyon Hopkin, Advance Copy