| Adequacy |
 Indubitably, Deer Tick’s first album, War Elephant, was a promising and solid start for the band. The biggest complaint was a silly one, being John McCauley’s gin-soaked, distinct voice. It’s silly because singers need to have at least something unique and identifiable to them and in many ways, his singing was an homage to the singer-songwriter he is channeling, Bob Dylan. And now, with Born on Flag Day, the Providence-based band has delivered one of the finest albums of the year.
Taken for what it is: strong folk leanings, with a sweet country shuffle, delivered with some of the best lyrics of the year, they all make for one brilliant combination. Ostensibly, McCauley’s voice sounds just the same and that gruff exterior is just fine when the music is this good. “Little White Lies”‘ beckoning calling finds McCauley singing a sad country ballad that sings, “With the thought of her, still dancing around my head. So please, let me be lonely tonight.” Forever unable to forget her, it’s like that viscous cycle many of us can relate to and just after that, the music cuts into a high-stepping, up-tempo taunt, “Let me forget about you.”...full text |
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| Rollingstone |
| On Deer Tick's impressive 2007 debut, War Elephant, one-man band John J. McCauley III sounds like a grizzled troubadour, conjuring old shoes and dirty dishes with a warm Lucky Strike croak. Now fronting a tour-honed quartet, the 23-year-old comes on like a stampede on Born on Flag Day, spurred by the galloping drums and backing vocals from Dennis Michael Ryan. McCauley sounds no less lonely, staring down abandonment and death in gentle waltzes and country-rock rambles. But the dysfunctional-love duet "Friday XIII" and a boozy version of the singalong suicide threat "Goodnight, Irene" suggest that well-composed misery still loves company....full text |
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| Allmusic |
| More focused than War Elephant, Deer Tick's sophomore album, Born on Flag Day, is comprised of ten songs in the straight-up stylings of indie rock and Americana. Vocalist John Joseph McCauley III's singing is still raspy, like a down-home version of Axl Rose, but here, he and his crew flesh out their woodsy sensibilities with a larger scope. This more expansive take builds "Smith Hill" to higher heights with the inclusion of orchestral backing tracks and rounds out "Stung," the tender '60s ballad of the record, with touches of electric piano. The sound is bigger, and the hooks are more palpable. By sacrificing grit, some of the charm that made the debut a success is lost along the way, but the sleeker production is only a minor setback and some of the songs onboard are Deer Tick's best thus far. Even with a heavy helping of spiteful, desperate lyrics delivered straight from the bottom of the bottle, the sparkling production makes Deer Tick seem like a likely crossover to the mainstream: especially fans of Tom Petty and John Prine. Following the blueprint of some of the sweeter moments on War Elephant, pedal steel and tremolo guitars make "White Lies" a heartwarming mood piece before it switches gears and springs into a rollicking romp, and the first two minutes of "Song About a Man" wisely capitalize on the cigarette-weary singer's ability to shine with only an acoustic and a kick drum, before bringing in harmonica and cello for the climax. The leadoff, "Easy," is probably the most amiable and accessible song of the bunch, clearly illustrating that McCauley's songwriting has matured substantially....full text |
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