"People Like Us", the opening track, is a quick honky jam, remniscient of the Grateful Dead's "Touch of Grey".  A snappy falsetto and background vocals really groove the song into infectious territory.  Deportees are two brothers and two others, and Peder Stenberg's vocals are a major component, propelling the music with a soulful engine.  In the title track, there's a Seger-esque strain in his voice that commands urgency from the churning guitar and flowing chorale behind him.  "Who Is Gonna Meet Me", is a well-orchestrated, dark swell of countrified melancholy that's rare even in Nashville.

There's an impressive variety of ups and downs on Damaged Goods.  "Missing You, Missing Me" is uptempo and chugs like a train flying through the plains. "Line of Fire" has a lonely campfire feel, with acoustic plucking and distanced drums.  The background vocals around the album bestow vivid extra dimensions of depth and soul and are a big part of why this record stands out.  

It's like Deportees took modern instruments and sentiments into the old West and created a sound that's way behind its time and ahead of it too.   Sort of strange that a Swedish band can reproduce an all-American sound as well as anyone, but it's more of a testament to how thoroughly fascinating this album is.  As "alt" in Swedish means "all" in English, this album is pure and real, all-country.