Thirty years and 26 albums into their career, the Mekons show signs of actually slowing down on Natural, which, true to its name, is the band’s most organic collection to date. As a punk group who never adhered to the genre’s tight stylistic requirements, the Mekons were always searching the countryside for ways to subvert their attack and with Natural they’ve brought the countryside into the studio. Acoustic instruments, sing-a-long jamborees, all that’s missing is the sound of a cracklin’ fire for this foray into authentic alt.country. In the past (1985’s Fear and Whiskey, 1987’s Honky Tonkin’), they deliberately mangled country music with a spiky irreverence and a ton of electricity. But here with tracks such as the jubilant “Diamonds,” the achingly desolate “The Hope and the Anchor” and the shuffling and scruffy “Give Me Wine or Money,” the group captures an unusual intimacy that relies on the vocalists sharing the mic and letting themselves get lost in spirit of the moment. It adds a new dimension to a group, which is saying something 30 years on.