The 10 songs on Notes Of Blue are inspired by the spirit of the blues, but not the standard blues as most know it. The unique and haunting tunings of Mississippi Fred McDowell, Skip James and Nick Drake were all points of exploration for Farrar for the new collection. The album opens with the country soul of Promise the World, followed by Back Against the Wall, a song that could stand alongside the great Son Volt songs of their early albums. However, Notes Of Blue reflects the blues as it resides in the folk tradition, but heavily amplified. The primal stomp of Cherokee St, the frenetic guitar on Static and the raw slide in Sinking Down exude grit and attitude. Conversely, tracks such as The Storm and Cairo and Southern seamlessly meld blues with hypnotic melodies that add a unique balance to Notes of Blue.