"If you’ve ever hung out at the Blackthorn, you’re no stranger to By Hook or Crook, one of Joplin’s top 3 musical acts. You’ve probably watched them go from “Gosh, I’m glad they’re only playing a few songs tonight” to pulling in a few dozen committed fans every weekend. If you’re like me, you’ve just recently realized that Joplin has given you a thirst for Country Western somewhere along the line, and that somewhere along that same line these guys started to quench that thirst just fine – even more than fine.

      So, when frontman, Keaton Taylor, asked me to review a free copy of their new EP, Missouri Loves Company, I jumped at the chance. Now, I’ve fallen victim before to the ole Joplin music routine. You go to watch some friends play a show, the show gets rowdy and fun, you don’t know if it’s the camaraderie you just experienced or the beer, but you’re dying to hear more, you get a copy of the album they recorded in their basement and then…they were way better last night. I realize this isn’t Nashville. We don’t have a bunch of music snobs pulling out all the stops to make every note sound just right. In Joplin, we do things ourselves. Needless to say, I didn’t have high hopes going into the first listen.

Honestly, though, I was blown away. The quality isn’t flawless, but it’s good. All the instruments come out as finely thought-out parts and not just noise. The words are all distinguishable. I don’t know if they went to a professional or what, but they did it right.

I began to admire them by watching them live, as I said, so once I got over the shock of hearing a well-recorded track, I tuned my ears to find out if they lost that special something I heard at the bar. To my surprise, it was still there. The riffs are still fun, especially in “Nameless Delicacy,” the attitude remains genuinely theirs, and the lyrics are still exactly what you want in a Country Western song – a mix between cocky clichés from whisky drinking cowboy wannabes and poetry from heartbroken twenty-somethings trying to give life an honest try. If these guys get signed, I imagine a music executive will force them to decide who gets to be the lead singer between the big scruffy-voiced guy or the guy with the 90s alternative rock throwback voice, but at this point I really can’t decide who I like better.

        In summary, all four tracks are solid, and I can’t wait to get more. I hope someone who matters hears this EP, and I hope you go check it out on iTunes here or on their Myspace page here. You won’t regret it."