‘Under the Savage Sky’: Best Un-Punk Punk Record

Under the Savage Sky will be remembered as one of the better punk records of the year for its decidedly un-punk elements of New Orleans brass breakdowns and full-throated R&B passion. But rock and roll is such a robust recipe that the aforementioned ingredients enrich, not distort, the flavor — blues, punk, R&B genres be damned; it’s been the same hearty meal all along. Under the Savage Sky is at once fresh and familiar, bristling with energetic revivals of time-tested rock truths. Best of all, Whitfield, at 60 years old, is a fiercer and stronger singer than most. It’s telling of his abilities when he, as an elder rocker, can make a lot of kids look muted by comparison.