I was an indifferent hearer of 16 Horsepower’s material until my own live hearing of Woven Hand, the latest incarnation of David Eugene Edwards and his biblically gothic art. Having "gotten it," it was time for me to revisit 16 Hp, the band that has received cultic acclaim for its ingenious melding of scriptural allusions, rustic sensibilities, and rock rhythms.

That’s why Olden, the newest 16 Horsepower CD, is getting my close attention. A collection of early demos and live pieces, Olden’s productions inform Woven Hand, the lyrical emphasis of which brought Edwards’ presentation back to where he started before studio production created a slightly more manic latter day voice of the prophet Jeremiah. The differences are slight but telling. One hears the earlier productions and finds an acoustic ambiance that renders natural integrity to the presentation, the thing that attracted me (and others) to Woven Hand.

You can hear the similarity right away in the 1993 demo of "American Wheeze," which eventually was recorded for Sackcloth ‘n’ Ashes. The initial recording is a bit more restrained and careful, with Edwards’ bandoneon predominating the aural landscape. A second demo the following year layers a dense slide guitar alongside a more earnest Edwards, a version that I find superior to the one on Sackcloth that maintains the basic format but pushes Edwards back into the echoing chamber and emphasizes an edgier guitar, as though to create ersatz gothic vibes and a distance between Edwards and the listener: the slide guitar moved the music South and away from the more folksy Western bandoneon. Because 16 Horsepower was considered and treated as more kitschy than edgy, the production relegated the preacher man, metaphorically, away from the stage and onto the radio.

Perhaps the most interesting elements of this new release are the live recordings from a 1994 Denver concert. Not only do we get a version of the rare "Slow Guilt Trot," but also early, and sometimes radically different, versions of songs that mostly appear on Low Estate. For example, the live version of the title song is energetic while the album version crawls in comparison.

The demo compilation provides an unreleased song, "Train Serenade," one of several Edwards tunes that hinges on a transit motif - something this Midwest native has a grip on, for sure - that is purely American: people as interstate commerce. This piece features a twangy two-guitar backdrop, bringing a blues flavor to the story telling. A true oddity, this appears to be the only 16 Hp cut on which Edwards is not the lead vocalist.

One wishes there were more duplicate demos, just to be able to understand the evolution of a singular talent in American rock music. Even so, these well-done initial efforts show that Edwards’ original artistic vision has never faltered; the apocalyptic voice has maintained its mournful resonance through over ten years and four labels. All 16 Horsepower fans will find something to like in Olden, but those who prefer Woven Hand to Edwards’ other works should hear these songs as a way to figure out what the others are hearing in 16 Horsepower’s major releases.