Owen Beverly marks his return with 'Shooting the Bull,' show at Mansion 462

It's always interesting when a musician, well, disappears off the face of the earth for a little while. Upon their return, you never really know what to expect. Will they still play your favorite song? Will the music even sound the same?

Such is the case with Owen Beverly, who will be opening for Steven Fiore tomorrow night at Mansion 462 in Chapel Hill.

The last time I personally saw him perform was in late 2003, at a Halloween night show with Jump, Little Children somewhere in South Carolina (Spartanburg, maybe) on the way to see some friends in Chattanooga. If my memory serves me right, he wore old-school gym clothes (knee socks, headband and the whole nine), performing the hard-ish rock songs of his then-recent release, The Drunk Lover EP. (Entourage fans may recognize that EP's title track.)

Not too long after that, it was radio silence while Beverly went home to Mississippi and awoke with a new musical direction in alt. country. He's back with a full-length album, Shooting the Bull, and a lengthy tour taking him through the fall.

Beverly had proven himself a worthy songwriter in the past, but there's something different about these new tracks. It's not just the mellow pace or the inflection in his voice, but the stories that he tells.

Check out some of his songs on MySpace and see what I mean for yourself tomorrow night. Tickets to the show are $7 or $5 for students. Beverly goes on at 9 p.m. with our buddy Steven Fiore following at 10 p.m. And maybe, just maybe, he'll make a sappy old fan happy and pull out "For Mia."