Drive-By Truckers/Glossary

When the Drive-By Truckers first came through town a decade ago, they let their frustrations out on the Beachland Tavern’s stage and punched a huge hole in the plywood floor. Things have since improved for the Athens, Ga.-based band that channels the Southern rock of Skynyrd and inflects it with a literary sensibility that would make William Faulkner proud. The rednecks that inhabit the Truckers’ tunes struggle with metaphysical questions, and the narratives the Truckers spin astutely capture that weariness. The band’s latest effort, last year’s Go-Go Boots, is another terrific collection of ballads and mid-tempo rockers about guys with guns (“Ray’s Automatic Weapon”) and bitter breakups (“The Weaker Man”). (Jeff Niesel)