It was during one of Seattle's rainiest summers in recent memory that the outlaws started to creep into Conrad Ford's country-tinged tales. They came by way of the real-life adventures of the band members and their families - mental health crises at a youth detention facility, running a weight room at a minimum security prison, tax evasion and imprisonment of a longtime friend. These tales brought daily discussion of what makes an outcast. And how that outcast copes. And grows. It was during his morning ferry commute and afternoon farmyard roaming that McAllister began humming a majority of the songs found on Secret Army. The resulting songs, which they often referred to as "outcast country", are a collection of stories detailing battles for hope and companionship. Woven from the perspectives of lone travelers, fellons, family men and mountain climbers - their execution sways from folk-ish, Townes Van Zandt-like ballads to the fuller Flying Burrito Brothers-inspired, laid-back country rock.