Portland's leading cosmic cowboy hits a rich seam on Doggone

For historical examples, see any 1969 live version of Velvet Underground’s “What Goes On”, the gently soaring output of Rose City Band, or the back catalogue of Sheffield-based guitarist Bobby Lee. On his new album Doggone, Portland, Oregon-based Jeffrey Silverstein cultivates a distinctly choogle-some aesthetic, but the considerable forward-leap in terms of depth of songwriting the cosmic cowboy has executed since 2023’s Western Sky Music means that the proceedings are aligned more to choogling’s laidback and unhurried philosophy than its actual churningly repetitive practice. So far, Silverstein’s recorded works have felt somewhat dry compared to the country-funk guitar-slinging groove mania he’s capable of conjuring live, with a suitably propulsive rhythm section in tow. Influenced by the realisation that American roots music runs deep within Silverstein’s family lore, Doggone savvily swerves such unfavourable comparisons by slowing the tempo and intensity and focusing instead on accentuating the warmth and wisdom of the songs, appealingly infused with flashes of self-acceptance and finding your own flow amidst the madness. Even the instrumentals – reliably combustible on stage ...