In an effort to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump, Ladyhawk decided to ditch the conventional studio and shacked up in an abandoned farmhouse for a couple of weeks with little more than their instruments and a generous supply of booze. The move paid off, as Shots, the resultant album, possesses a raw, emotive quality so distinct it goes a long way towards making up for the fact that Ladyhawk’s music isn’t particularly interesting.

The band largely treads the same sonic territory on Shots as they did on their eponymous debut — namely a doped-up meeting of Neil Young in his Crazy Horse days and the early college rock bands he inspired, like Sebadoh and The Replacements — which wasn’t the most exciting or unique thing at the time and certainly isn’t now. Fortunately, Ladyhawk make up for most of their stylistic shortcomings with scrappy determination and sometimes painfully earnest delivery.

“I Don’t Always Know What You’re Saying” kicks the album off on a strong note, opening with bombastic drums before transitioning into a rollicking chug, punctuated by ghostly piano and Duffy Driediger’s impassioned wails. The blues riff that drives “Fear” is fairly subtle, but Driediger’s sincere plea to “feel something other than fear” keeps the song memorable. The album’s true strength, though, lies in the trio of “Corpse Paint,” “(I’ll be your) Ashtray” and “Faces of Death.” Here, Ladyhawk bring things down to a slow burn, allowing for a sinister, isolated feel to emerge. This eeriness is often enough to trump Shots’ predictability, resulting in an album that, though somewhat familiar, is perfect when you’re lurking around the house in the dead hours of the night.