The Delines are a soul country band from Portland, Oregon formed in 2015 with four previous studio albums to their name. Willy Vlautin is the songwriter for the band and previously with Richmond Fontaine with over 15 albums released and UK, European wide fans where they tour regularly. I've long thought Kelly Reichardt would be the perfect director to adapt one of Vlautin's books. I think she might've even been attached to NORTHLINE or LEAN ON PETE at some point. But, man, if ever one of his books was tailor made for her, it's this one. Tonally, THE NIGHT ALWAYS COMES doesn't feel that different than Reichardt's recent masterpiece, FIRST COW, which also concerns itself with goodness and greed. You could say this is a novel about housing affordability in Portland, a story of economic disparity and the graft required to eke out a living. But that might be to sell this story short, it is also a propulsive, noir-ish tale, with some truly memorable characters. It made me want to go out and immerse myself in everything Willy Vlautin has written.

A book begging to be read on the beach, with the sun warming the sand and salt in the air: pure escapism.Lake Oswego Library - Lake Oswego Library Presents: Willy Vlautin - with Bill Kenower – on The Free and Don’t Skip Out on Me – video - 34:42 Lynette has made some serious mistakes in her life, and she has issues that she may or may not be able to control, but she is working as hard as she possibly can. And a large part of that is her love of her brother. She wants to buy the house, not just for herself and her mother, but for Kenny, who needs that stability a lot more than she or her mother does. And when kindness does shine through, from an unexpected source, it is the relief we have been pining for, a beacon in the gloom, a desperately needed recognition in a world of people turning away. But the problem remains. What does gentrification look like for people who are being pushed out, whether they are good people or not? ( For my wife and me, it was being driven out of Brooklyn for affordable housing 125 miles away. No criminality involved, at least none that I will admit to.) Set over two days and two nights, The Night Always Comes follows Lynette’s frantic search—an odyssey of hope and anguish that will bring her face to face with greedy rich men and ambitious hustlers, those benefiting and those left behind by a city in the throes of a transformative boom. As her desperation builds and her pleas for help go unanswered, Lynette makes a dangerous choice that sets her on a precarious, frenzied spiral. In trying to save her family’s future, she is plunged into the darkness of her past, and forced to confront the reality of her life.

Through the long night in search of money, Lynette meets many people who might seem helpful at first but tend to give in to greed and turn against her. While the epigraph of the book quotes a failed politician, I’d prefer to not dignify him with a nod and instead quote Daniel Craig’s nameless character in Layer Cake: ‘ But never get too greedy.’ Lynette’s actions feel justifiable to some extent, particularly as much of the money was owed her or she is acting in response to violence against her, whereas the other characters seem to act out of greed. Like a spaghetti-western film, those who violate justified morals or break their convictions tend to get their come-uppin’s, and fast. The album features Vlautin on guitar and vocals, Amy Boone (vocals), Cory Gray on piano and trumpets, Sean Oldham on drums, and Freddy Trujillo on bass. It is produced by John Morgan Askew and features 10 new Delines songs, in addition to a cover of Spiritualized’s 1997 song "Broken Heart". The main issue with a Willy Vlautin novel is that it has to end. Here is another phenomenal book that unnerves, disquiets and makes you wince as his prose stabs at you violently with unhinged fervour.Amazing . . . Vlautin hit the nail on the head with this. I could not stop thinking about the characters and where the story would take them.'