Personnel: John Popper (vocals, harmonica); Jay Bennett (guitar, piano, percussion); Carlos Sosa (saxophone); Fernando "Radical" Castillo (trumpet); Raúl Vallejo (trombone); Ben Wilson (keyboards); Brendan Hill (drums, percussion).

Audio Producer: Jay Bennett.

Audio Mixers: Jay Bennett; Jim Vollentine.

Recording information: Pieholden Suite Sound, Chicago, IL; Texas Treefort Studio, Austin, TX.

Editor: Carlos Sosa.

Photographer: Cambria Lyn Harkey.

Proving that there is life after Bonnaroo, Blues Traveler moves definitively beyond the "jam band" tag with BASTARDOS!, produced by former Wilco linchpin Jay Bennett. While this album doesn't exactly reach the outre levels of Wilco's YANKEE HOTEL FOXTROT, it's undoubtedly Blues Traveler's most sophisticated, forward-looking record. The band's moniker has always been something of a misnomer, and the bluesy element of their sound is almost non-existent here. Instead there's a strong flavor of '60s psychedelia. Keyboards are a greater presence then ever before (the band's keyboardist was still a relatively recent addition at the time of this album's release), and while John Popper's virtuosic chromatic harmonica playing is still in evidence, it's no longer the main focus. Popper and company take more chances than ever with the harmonic direction of the songs, and Bennett responds in kind by framing those songs in some of the most inventive sonic settings of the band's career.