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Empire Builders Nashville City Paper - Riffs Jason Ringenberg’s Empire Builders (Yep Roc) presents his alternately fiery and thoughtful commentaries on American foreign policy and its impact while also showcasing his usual brand of rockin’ country. Ringenberg adopts a spoken word posture on the opening and closing selections “American Question” and “American Reprieve,” coming very close to sounding like a Southern beat poet at times, his verbal forays being backed only by banjo and bass on the opener and bass on the closer. There are other striking tunes, among them the poignant “Tuskegee Pride” which addresses racism from a most unexpected posture, “Rebel Flag in Germany,” “Chief Joseph’s Last Dream” and “New-Fashioned Imperialist.” “Link Wray” is a straightforward tribute to the guitar-slinging Wray, one of Ringenberg’s musical heroes, and the lone non-topical track on the CD. Empire Builders is sometimes angry, frequently confrontational, but never ignorant or mean-spirited. It certainly won’t please everyone, but Ringenberg doesn’t neglect the music, even as he’s driving home the message. Ron Wynn rwynn@nashvillecitypaper.com