When the V-Roys called it quits on New Year's Eve, 1999, one of the brightest spots in Knoxville music, and roots rock in general, was extinguished. The former members have spent the past 16 months rising from the ashes. V-roys co-lead singer/songwriter Mic Harrison, bassist Paxton Sellers and drummer Jeff Bills formed the Faults with former Ramblin' Roy member Robbie Trosper. (Bills has since quit the group to be replaced by Jason Peters.)  The Faults' debut disc is filled with the punch and energy of the V-Roys. However, while the V-Roys seemed to have their work boots planted in rural Appalachia, the Faults are more uptown adventure. Harrison's songs are more straight-ahead pop and rock than Americana. The guitars are louder, and when the band reaches back to roots, it's to early 1970s rock, 1980s power pop and Sun Records-era rock 'n' roll (check out those rockabilly licks on "Whispering Goodbye"). With the rock solid rhythm work by Bills and Sellers and the scorching guitar of Trosper, the disc plunges along for 11 tracks before detouring with the mournful acoustic number "Poison Land" (featuring some fine harmony vocals by Superdrag's John Davis). For those who've see the band live, though, this album is only half of the picture. Trosper has emerged as an important part of the vocal and songwriting mix, and the most exciting thing about the Faults may be seeing how the punk-rooted Trosper merges with the rootsier Harrison. In contrast, Scott Miller, once the most dominant voice in the V-Roys, offers a folksy all-acoustic live disc "Are You With Me?" The disc, a quiet precursor to his Sugar Hill Records debut (due in June), is made up of performances at Johnson City's Down Home and Maryville's Palace Theater. "Are You With Me?" collects a few choice V-Roys-era songs including the sad "Lie I Believe" and "Goodnight Loser." Yet it's the newer numbers that provide the best moment: "Amtrack Crescent," "Mess of This Town" and especially "Daddy Raised A Boy" - a regretful song about a father/son relationship - are among the best of Miller's career. The V-Roys may be gone, but the alumni of the band appear to be on the edge of creating something just fine.
Grade: B (both discs)