This is the story of the three Texas boys busy minding their own bidnis when the Angel of the Lord appeared unto them saying, 'When the Winston Churchills start firin' their Winston rifles into the sky from the lone star state, drinkin' their lone star beer and smokin' their winston cigarettes, know the time is drawin' nigh when the son shall be lifted on high'. We told 'em that didn't sound very Sunday-go-ta-meetin. 'What do you expect when the Lord calls on the crippled, deaf and blind to lead the children of Israel into the promised land'. 'Children of Israel?', we asked. 'Don't you boys know nothin'?, the USA is the center of Jerusalem'.

I hear the train a-comin'

Saturday relaxin with some Brown Ale and Lift To Experience The Texas Jerusalem Crossroads, the above from the opening spoken words of "Just As Was Told". Anyone else enjoy this 2-CD concept album from the early 2000s? Kind of a mix of Godspeed You Black Emperor and ... And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead, fitting names for this religious Texas space rock band's epic release on the obscure British label established by former Cocteau Twins Robin Guthrie and Simon Raymonde, who both do some of the mixing as well.

Raymonde explained,"When I heard the demos, I was staggered by the swagger, the effortlessness of it all. Surely they couldn't really be as cool as they sounded? A plane trip to Texas was next on the agenda, and my fate was sealed. A thunderous show (literally inside a tent during one of the worst storms in Texas history) convinced me that I had to put this record out, but also that I was undoubtedly in the presence of genius. We signed the band within two minutes of them walking off stage".

From Athens to London to Paris to Rome
The stars are going to shine
From here to Palestine
When the angels take flight
Deep from the heart of the dark Texas night
With crippled wings