Ramsay Midwood's debut, Shoot Out at the OK Chinese Restaurant, is an album of swampy, bluesy songs full of soul and steeped in myth about backwaters and working-class outsiders--hobos, junkies, lusty men, and their dangerous ladies. Originally self-released, Shoot Out received so much grassroots attention that, unsigned, Midwood became a darling of Los Angeles venues like House of Blues. He landed at Vanguard Records, and his folk-rock fits comfortably alongside the label's legendary folk and blues artists, many of whom could serve as archetypes for his idiosyncratic characters. Midwood can sound like a male Bobbie Gentry at some turns (the sultry drawl, lackadaisical lead guitar, tempo, and Southern themes of "Chicago" and "Alligator's Lament"). Other times he calls to mind artists like Woody Guthrie or Bob Dylan, especially delivering the spoken-word vocals on closer "Fisherman's Friend." Overall, this is a pleasing debut from an artist to watch. --Jillian Steinberger

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