Army Mule

Tom Waits grew steadily less prolific after redefining himself as a junkyard noise poet with Swordfishtrombones, but the five-year wait between The Black Rider and 1999's Mule Variations was the longest yet. Given the fact that Waits decided to abandon major labels for the California indie Epitaph, Mule Variations would seem like a golden opportunity to redefine himself and begin a new phase of his career. However, it plays like a revue of highlights from every album he's made since Swordfishtrombones. Of course, that's hardly a criticism; the album uses the ragged cacophony of Bone Machine as a starting point, and proceeds to bring in the songwriterly aspects of Rain Dogs, along with its affection for backstreet and backwoods blues, plus a hint of the beatnik qualities of Swordfish.

In the four-year interim between Gov't Mule studio albums, guitar boss Warren Haynes has been busy: He played on the final Allman Brothers Band tour, paid tribute to Jerry Garcia with a symphony orchestra, issued an Americana-esque solo album, and played on James Cotton's Cotton Mouth Man. That said, no other music he makes resonates in the same way as what he creates with Gov't Mule (co-founder and drummer Mat Abts, keyboardist/guitarist Danny Louis, and bassist Jorgen Carlsson). Revolution Come…Revolution Go began on election night 2016. The band had their own ideas about the outcome, but as the night wore on, their worst fears came true and influenced the direction of the music here. The title doesn't pin the definition of "revolution" down to one topic, it's a verb, noun, adjective, and metaphor in Gov't Mule's…