Parts One and Two of Joseph Liddy & the Skeleton Horse's self-titled debut album are out now.

Joseph Liddy and the Skeleton Horse is the new project from former The Middle East banjo player Joseph Ireland. Described by one critic as 'like The Pixies and Sonic Youth got together to play country songs written for them by Bob Dylan and Jack White', it is as far from the sound of his former band as one could go. Gone are the gentle harmonies and intricate guitars that characterised his former band, replaced with Ireland's distinctive, bourbon-soaked vocal and a wall of snarling, overdriven guitars.

Before joining The Middle East, Ireland worked as a drug and alcohol counsellor in a rehab clinic in his home town of Townsville, working mostly with homeless aboriginal men. The songs of Joseph Liddy are a direct response to this, sharing their stories and experiences with a passionate empathy.

The debut album from Joseph Liddy and the Skeleton Horse is being released in three parts. In homage to Neil Young's Rust Never Sleeps, the first two 'sides' of the 3-sided release are alternately electric and acoustic, with an emphasis on guitars, banjos and mandolins. The third part of the album comes back to electric, but this time adding organs and keyboards to complement the already considerable wall of noise.