True Sadness

Reuniting with Rick Rubin, the brothers explore the beauty of heartbreak. Gorgeous acoustic ballads like “I Wish I Was” and “Fisher Road to Hollywood” are wrought with emotion, while the crunchy distortion of “Satan Pulls the String” and stomping beat of “Ain’t No Man” are celebratory anthems of survival and rebellion. Yet, the most memorable moments on True Sadness—like “Mama, I Don’t Believe” and “No Hard Feelings”—are somewhere between the highs and lows, when the Avetts channel Tom Petty’s bittersweet, Wildflowers-era Americana.