Record Rack

*** Old 97’s, “20 Fight Songs,” Elektra. Despite the Americana tinge of its name, Old 97’s are not your standard-issue neo-traditional revivalists. Instead of conjuring evocations of hard-working plain folk and corn-pone heartache, this quartet doesn’t flinch from real-life concerns. It also has a stronger taste for hard-driving pop melodies than its roots-rock brethren.

On its latest release, lead singer Rhett Miller digs into the muck of broken relationships and tries to emerge with his self-esteem intact. The lyrics tend to be fatalistic and self-pitying, the musings of a loner who has been burned too many times to hold out hope for a rosier future. On “Lonely Holiday,” Miller sings such lines as “I’ve thought so much about suicide / Parts of me have already died.”

The melodies tell a different story, though, and that’s what gives “20 Fight Songs” its resonant zing. The band revels in the charged ebullience of ringing power chords and sharply articulated riffs, as on such tracks as “Lonely Holiday” and “Murder (Or a Heart Attack).” But Old 97’s can also shift into downcast shuffles and twisted rockabilly. That desire to roam across different styles serves Old 97’s well.

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.