Some bands form, break up, and disappear. Saint Suburbia found their way back. The Minnesota outfit first came together as Best Intentions in 1994, played together until 1997, then went their separate ways to pursue other projects. Sixteen years passed before three of the members reunited in 2013, and the lineup was finally completed by a fourth member in 2023. That long, winding history is written into every groove of Way Far Gone, their second album, and it explains the easy, worn-in chemistry that runs through the whole record. As the band puts it, they have been playing together for a long time, so they are pretty good at pushing each other.
The current lineup is Turner Berg on guitar and vocals, Kris Olk on guitar, vocals, and bass, Neil Adams on drums, harmonica, and mandolin, and Wade Anderson on vocals, bass, and guitar. Crucially, every member wrote songs for the album, which is a large part of why it covers so much stylistic ground while still hanging together. Blending classic rock and alternative country in the tradition of The Replacements, Uncle Tupelo, The Gear Daddies, and the Gin Blossoms, it was recorded and mixed on 24-track digital by Mike Schmidt at Legion Park Studio in Shakopee, Minnesota, with mastering by Craig Holets. There is roughly fifty minutes of music here, and it rewards the full sit-down.
The Album
It’s You opens the record on familiar ground, its intro nodding toward the Eagles’ Already Gone before it quickly branches off into far more interesting territory. The sound is rock but held at a slight distance, as if leaving room for the acoustic instruments still to come, right down to the wailing harmonica that closes it out. Land of Milk and Honey begins with warbling guitar feedback before an unexpected turn into acoustic, Neil Young and America-flavored reverie, a train trip to Colorado at the mouth of the Chippewa River, all given an early-Dylan cast by the Al Kooper-style organ.
Putting On Airs is the album’s wittiest moment, a mini-screed that pits Wilco against Matchbox 20, black coffee against lattes. You may find yourself on the other side of that argument, but the song is sharp and well-built, and it delivers the album’s first real fuzz-guitar solo, which absolutely nails the landing. Brother John is the first deep step into Americana, all mandolin, twangy electrics, and a clap-along beat, its guitar solo evoking fond memories of Mike Bloomfield. Hold On Part 2 is a pleasing blend of Crazy Horse fuzz-box and harmony-vocal pop rock.
The title track Way Far Gone carries a CSNY-style arrangement, heavy on vocal harmonies and acoustic guitar with quieter leads and minimal drums. Been Thinking makes the album’s underlying Byrds connection explicit, with surprising twists throughout its verses and chorus and some genuinely cool tribal drumming. Stolen is one of the record’s most intriguing tracks, sung as though the narrator can’t quite commit to telling his story, half-muttering some of it into the collar of his jacket. It is compelling and bittersweet, a sound that is hard to pin down but that grows in stature with each listen. And No, I Know closes things in fine form, equal parts acoustic rock and hard fuzz guitar in a tale of romantic regret.
Final Thoughts
Way Far Gone is a consistent, generous record with a lot to like. The four songwriters give it real variety, from Eagles and Byrds echoes to Crazy Horse fuzz and Americana twang, yet it never loses its cohesive identity. This is a band that has earned its chemistry the long way, over decades, and it shows in how comfortably these songs sit together. For anyone who loves classic rock and alternative country made by people who genuinely mean it, this is well worth investigating.
Way Far Gone is out now, self-released. Available on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and other services. Find Saint Suburbia at saintsuburbiaband.com.
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