Four decades after releasing the first openly gay country album, Patrick Haggerty & Friends are back with a fresh batch of songs as poignant as ever. Running the gamut from gut-wrenching ballads to rowdy marxist singalongs, Haggerty uses his knack for sharp storytelling to shine a light on institutionalized racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia. The current emergence of fascism and the deep political divisions in American culture are making Lavender Country a critical component of progressive and radical politics.