Richard Buckner- Dents and Shells

Formerly of San Fransisco band, The Doubters, Richard Buckner now resides in New York, but mostly on the road. Dents and Shells follows 2002’s obtuse Impasse.



Artist Richard Buckner
Album Dents and Shells
Label Fargo

I was challenged by a friend that if I listened to Richard Buckner I’d never touch Ryan Adams again. So I bought his sixth full-length album, Dents and Shells. Buckner is claimed by his fans to be one of the most heartfelt and honest singer-songwriters around today. He’s crafted a sound built on low-key elegance and stage shows on noise-rock. Dents and Shells isn’t pared to the bone, there are some powerful full band tracks where he gets to raise his voice from mumbled whispers to make bold statements. Think Nick Drake and Townes Van Zandt, but with a more home-spun feel. It’s a grower, but I won’t be throwing out Hearbreaker for a while.

You’ll probably like Richard Buckner if you like the other artists on this page, and people like Sufjan Stevens and Damien Jurado. It’s straight up Americana, but done well. I find myself unconsciously coming back to it again and again.