Two fantastic singles immediately enter the Best of 2025 chat.
“My Old Habits”
Fancy Hagood
Written by Fancy Hagood and Daniel Tashian
JK: Hagood’s at his best when he’s at his most vulnerable, and that’s exactly what makes “My Old Habits” shine. In the aftermath of a breakup, he admits that he can keep his shit together well enough during the week but that, because he and his partner separated on a weekend, he lapses back into established behavior patterns each Saturday and Sunday. And he knows that it’s a terrible idea to go “back off the deep end,” but he can’t stop himself.
Tashian’s a great match for Hagood as a producer, too, because he knows how to make a mopey, introspective song sound like a hit, at least in the AAA and Americana sense. The arrangement here splits the difference between twangy alt-country and power-pop, and it makes “My Old Habits” the catchiest single of Hagood’s career to date. A
KJC: I’m genuinely surprised that I’ve never heard a song that connects breaking up over the weekend making it necessary to embrace your vices to get through the following weekends alone.
Hagood’s vocals have enough of a Ty Herndon warmth to ground what could’ve been a little too close to a Gary LeVox performance for my tastes. Hagod uses his high register effectively without once spilling over to whininess.
This is mature and intelligent country music made for and by adults, and I sure do love an opportunity to say that. A
“You’re Gonna Fall”
Tami Neilson featuring JD McPherson
Written by Tami Neilson
Kevin John Coyne: It’s on days like this that I’m thankful that I wasn’t doing single reviews in the early and mid-nineties.
Because another great Tami Neilson record is about as noteworthy as another great Trisha Yearwood album or another killer Pam Tillis single. It’s about as surprising that the songwriting is exquisite as it was when Kim Richey or Matraca Berg put something out. And the fresh and captivating production which instantly announces “You’re Gonna Fall” as a Neilson joint is as distinctive as the first notes of a Patty Loveless or Shania Twain record. When you know, you know.
Because you can drop all of those names and Tami Neilson doesn’t sound like a throwback or a carbon copy in comparison. No, she just evokes the memory of a brief moment in time that at least resembled a meritocracy in country music, when a voice this undeniable with material this strong and production this innovative would have made superstardom inevitable, even if radio didn’t fully bite.
My fingers reman tightly crossed for a surprise platinum breakout for Neilson like we saw with K.T Oslin in the late eighties. Nobody releasing new music today deserves it more. A
Jonathan Keefe: This type of spaghetti western aesthetic is one of the most effective for Neilson because it allows her to take her dramatic flair in so many different directions. If not a full-on signature sound for her, it’s a well she returns to often and always with great results like “Call Your Mama” and “Baby You’re A Gun.”
On “You’re Gonna Fall,” she and duet partner McPherson let the minor-key arrangement create a sense of menace as they each cast the title phrase as a threat. What makes the record so great is that they’re not actually taking down a rival; instead, they’re singing as would-be lovers in a courtship. And they both know that their confidence and swagger are going to close this deal. “I’ll be the one knocks ya head over heels and heels over heart,” Neilson wails on the chorus as McPherson holds down a raspy baritone harmony vocal. The interplay between his timbre and limited range with Neilson’s power and clarity only heightens the drama on the record.
Every second of this record smokes: Kiss your ass goodbye, you’re gonna fall. A
Leave a Reply