Another bountiful crop of new releases.
Ian Noe
Canyon Falls Trailer Band
Concluding his trilogy of East Kentucky tributes with a full-on concept album speaks to Noe’s uncommon ambition and skill. What impresses most about this record is the depth of Noe’s world-building: It’s less about that dreaded “authenticity” than about believability and honesty for the characters in his sharply-drawn narratives. He knows the music of East KY has been having a real moment for a few years now, and he’s secure in his own place in that.
There’s a swipe at Luke Combs, specifically, that misses the mark on Combs’ persona and status, but that’s perhaps the lone real mis-step that pulls focus from how thoughtfully he’s approached this. He’s three-for-three at this point in terms of dropping Album Of The Year contenders, and he’s emerged as one of the most vital artists in the space in fairly short order. Essential.
Pokey LaFarge
Rent Money
Have never been convinced that he understands what “schtick” really entails, and this does nothing to challenge that perception. Maybe a bit more meat to the songwriting here than has been his norm, but that’s not exactly the highest ceiling. It’s fine for what it is.
Katie Pruitt
Fools For the Fleeting
The arrangements aren’t quite as sharp here as on her last record, but her singing and writing absolutely are. Hers is a unique skill set: No one is better at unpacking complex (religious, queer, social) trauma histories with such moral clarity or such songcraft.
Jason Scott & the High Heat
Play Boy
Lord, every second of this absolutely rips. And if we’re seeing acts like Flatland Cavalry and Muscadine Bloodline making mainstream inroads, then there’s honestly no reason why this crew’s perfectly crafted, clever country-rock shouldn’t do the same.
Drew Baldridge
Faith Farm Family
A couple of years back, he had a viral hit that turned into an actual radio hit that was noteworthy for taking the stance, far too novel for country radio this century, that women are people. So it’s noteworthy, too, that this album has a song that directly addresses a bunch of genre- and class-coded stereotypes of (toxic, yes) masculinity. There’s also a duet with rising star Emily Ann Roberts that’s lovely and worthwhile.
But the other hour of this?
It has all of the depth and reactionary defensiveness that its Live Laugh Love title suggests.
Dan Seals & Friends
The Last Duet
With both Easy Listening and early 80s pop-country having a moment of re-evaluation, why shouldn’t an artist like Seals capitalize and get some posthumous flowers? The roster of collaborators on this is deranged in the best ways: Vince Gill, Suzy Bogguss, and John Berry are all here… and so are Katherine McPhee and Lynda Carter? It makes for a fascinating listen from track to track, and pretty well everyone– except for Sara Evans, who’s immediately off-key– brings their best to this project.
Some of the late-90s tracks selected aren’t of the same caliber as his run of hit singles, but there’s a real sense of fondness for Seals and sense of camaraderie that comes across in the recorded performances.
Telling: Tanya Tucker goes hard as only she can and does her damnedest to make “Bop” listenable for the first time ever.
Tony Hannah
Love It or Leave It
Love the distinctive point of view in her writing and the effortless cool of her retro vibe; even in an era of throwback artists, her style stands apart. Could leave the relatively thin vocals, though she does clear most contemporary bars. Definitely one to watch.
Albums like the Dan Seals project generally don’t click with me, but I did hear the Luke Bryan duet on ”Everything That Glitters (Is Not Gold)” and thought it was pretty good. I thought it was nice to see; I’ve said before that it seems like so many people in this genre — including Bryan himself — act like country music didn’t exist before 2010, and it was nice to be reminded that at least Bryan himself knows better, even as atrocious as the majority of his catalog remains.
I shuddered when I saw Bryan’s name as the duet partner on what is easily Seals’ best song and one of the best country songs of the 80s, full stop. So it was a most pleasant surprise that Bryan didn’t get run the entire way over by the prospect of singing a song that didn’t actively debase himself or insult the genre’s foundations. I don’t think he will ever have any kind of late-career credibility era– his brand-new album being Exhibit A– but his performance on this record hints at the career he could have chosen to have, for sure.
My sentiments exactly. Talk about wasted potential.
I never got the sense from Luke Bryan that he felt like country music didn’t exist before 2010. I’ve never been a fan by any means, but I always sensed he’d be doing much different music than his handlers direct him toward if he had his way. That’s probably true for the majority of contemporary commercial stars.
I never got the sense from Luke Bryan that he felt like country music didn’t exist before 2010.
Not that I think he didn’t know better, but, well..I realize this may not be entirely fair, but I keep going back to this particular remark from him from 2015:
…I think that people who want Merle, Willie and Waylon just need to buy Merle, Willie and Waylon. I’ve never been a ‘Those were the good old days’ kind of guy. I’m not big on looking back on the past. I’m not an outlaw country singer. I don’t do cocaine and run around. So I’m not going to sing outlaw country. I like to hunt, fish, ride around on my farm, build a big bonfire and drink some beers and that’s what I sing about. It’s what I know. I don’t know about laying in the gutter, strung out on drugs. I don’t really want to do that….
And, I’m just like, ”really? That’s the route you’re gonna take?” To put it another way, maybe it’s not that they think country music didn’t exist before a given really late year so much as it is that far too much of what they do seems to be so disconnected from what came before. But you may well be right about what kind of music Bryan would do were it not for his handlers. I remember Darius Rucker coming right out and saying that if he had his way, that old-style country would be exactly what he’d be doing.
Oh that’s right. I did forget about that tone-deaf quote. It makes a good case for your position.
That Jason Scott album does indeed rip. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!