Deer Tick

It doesn’t get too much better for a young band than having Rolling Stone’s David Fricke, the reigning eminence of rock ’n’ roll journalism, single you out from among 1,900 artists as the No. 1 breakout act of South By Southwest. Needless to say, the guys in Deer Tick were a little stoked to find themselves so lauded just before the June release of their second album, Born on Flag Day. (Lead vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist/pedal steel player John Joseph McCauley III was, indeed, born on June 14.) Their twangish sound, led by McCauley’s grizzled vox and Hank Williams-warped sensibilities, completely belies their New England roots: All four are Rhode Islanders (though McCauley now lives in Brooklyn), but close your eyes, and you could swear you’re hearing some boys raised sayin’ “y’all.” (Excerpt from: http://2009.aclfestival.com/band/deer-tick)