In 16 Horsepower’s Aching, Grim Stories, the Torment Rings True

The darker myths of rural America are recurring themes in rock ‘n’ folk, whether coming from the Southwest or Appalachia, from Neil Young or Nick Cave. Out there on the great American outback, the Doors once declared, the future’s uncertain and the end is always near. The members of Denver-based 16 Horsepower are modern masters of that desolate canvas, crafting songs that seek redemption but usually settle for a nightmare of grief.

The band travels ever deeper into that well of torment on its new “Secret South” album, material that added both depth and fire to its performance Tuesday at Vynyl. As Pascal Humbert’s stand-up bass provided a heavy undercurrent to the darkest songs, singer David Eugene Edwards was bent over his guitar, banjo or accordion, warbling of Jesus and the devil.

This was postmodern blues, aching stories of hellhounds on their tail. The band’s country-flavored punk has always leaned toward gloomy obsessions, less interested in good times than bad vibes. Bleak instrumental passages Tuesday could be dirge-like and twisted, or straight-ahead and rocking, complete with energetic soloing. But the music frequently revealed a taste for the Southern gothic, mixed with the bleak obsessiveness of Young’s “On the Beach” album.

It was a single-minded sound and vision, tapping into some grim, if familiar, territory. But the performance rang true, never losing a feeling of desperation. Which puts 16 Horsepower in some good, haunted company.