Waco Express: Live and Kickin At Schubas, Chicago

Full of shout-along manifestos and strident tomfoolery from each of their seven studio albums, WACO EXPRESS lives up to the mandate given to the mastering engineer to "err on the side of massive and fierce and overwhelming". Critical darlings since their unleashing, featuring a scribe-ready lineup of members from the Mekons, Jesus Jones, Wreck and others, as well as a genre-bending fearlessness, the Waco Brothers have always saved their best for the stage. Sadly, there's always been the undercurrent of grousing, as good as the records are, that, well, it's not like being there. Well, now it is. On WACO EXPRESS, you can practically feel the heat from the stage, smell the smoke on your clothes, taste the beery taste of beer and let your ears bask in the un-tempered wall of sound.