The Backlog: The Boys (And Girls) Of Fall Edition
Actually nothing to do with Kenny Chesney. But with a crisp breeze in the air, it felt appropriate. 15 albums!
Clearing out the backlog in anticipation of some year end releases. Probably also have another 10-12 albums that are already listened to, but not yet reviewed. I assume that the backlog will have two more editions this year. October and November. December will be dedicated mostly to year end content.
As always, a short guide to the Country Subgenre Classification system.
1- Traditional Country
2- Country Rock
3- Modern Country
4- Pop Country
5- Southern Pop
(Editor note: Substack is telling me the email length may be too long for some inboxes to fully load. That is probably because of the album cover pictures. If in fact it is cut off, the full post is always available at the website. Sorry for any inconveniences)
1. Chase Mathew- We All Grow Up
-Tracks- 6
-Time- 17 min.
-Subgenre: 4, 5
Generic and surface level pop country performed by an artist who generously speaking hasn’t quite figured out the whole emotive vocal thing. Production is catchy, but empty.
Favorite- I Don’t Carolina
Least Favorite- Darlin’, Makin’ You Miss Me. Small Town S***
2. Chase Mathew- Always Be Mine
-Tracks: 5
-Time: 15 min.
-Subgenre: 4, 5
Mostly the same, but slightly better. A little more self-awareness goes a long way. The performance is still detached, but the overall effect isn’t as distracting, since the production doesn’t get as much in the way.
Favorite- First, Saltwater Cinderella
Least Favorite- Crazy Girls, Always Be Mine
3. Luke Combs- Father’s & Sons
-Tracks: 12
-Time: 40 min.
-Subgenre: 1, 3
Unexpected and deeply appreciated creative turn from a superstar. Shades of Kenny Chesney's Be As You Are era, wherein a superstar takes advantage of success to release a passion project. Deep and nuanced reflection on fatherhood, aging, child rearing, and maturation. The most traditional Combs has ever gone, the production choices excell at setting the scene for the mostly slow and mid-tempo tunes. Cohesive, clear, concretized. A conceptual project par excellence.
Favorite- Most of the record could qualify for this section. I’ll specifically mention Take Me Out To The Ballgame as that probably cuts the hardest.
Least Favorite- It is times like these that I hate having to choose a least favorite song. Maybe the religious framing of Ride Around Heaven won’t be for everyone. You really can’t go wrong with anything.
4. Jesse Daniel- Countin’ The Miles
-Tracks: 11
-Time: 38 min.
-Subgenre: 1
Trad country that operates straight down the middle, albeit with high levels of execution. Daniel lives or dies based on the writing and nothing here screams “listen to me” as some of the highlights from his last record. To be fair, Beyond These Walls is a modern day classic. His bar is extremely high. 10/10 tradco soundtrack. 7+/10 everything else.
Favorite- When Your Tomorrow Is In The Past, Tomorrow’s Good Old Days (ft. Ben Haggard), Cut Me Loose
Least Favorite- Countin’ The Miles (it is difficult to properly pull off the traveling musician trope. It wasn’t just Daniel. Lainey Wilson also struggled on Hang Tight Honey. There’s more to be written about that idea.)
5. Kameron Marlowe- Keepin’ The Light On
-Tracks: 16
-Time: 56 min.
-Subgenre: 2, 1, 3
Yet another Nashville product falls prey to the patent pending “big voice capable of delivering great results, but a mediocre, simple, and basic guitar and drums production lets him down.” And yes, of course there are some great moments that only really serve to tantalizingly highlight what could have been. These really long albums without differentiation between tracks stunt connection with individual songs. By the end, every guitar and drum quirk has been done three times and it suffers.That holds true in spite of the lyrical approach and general themes/discussions which vary nicely. (Editor note: could be I’m being too harsh. One person’s cohesiveness is another’s mushy lack of individualization. The vocals are capable of handling the muscular guitars far better than many a Nashville product. If I had more spins with the records, I could see it growing on me.)
Favorite- Never Really Know, Leaning On You, Will It Be There In The Morning, Broke Down In A Truck, Leave The Light On
Least Favorite- Nothin’ Slow Us Down, I Can Run, Lock Me Up
6. Avery Anna- Breakup Over Breakfast
-Tracks: 17
-Time: 49 min.
-Subgenre: 4, 5, 3
Diverse accoutrement mostly aids and enhances the talented vocals and evocative delivery. All thoroughly within the (arguably too) broad Nashvillean Overton window, the diversity leads to an identity-less sonic result at times. Should have been sliced down to 13 tracks. With young talent, these drawbacks aren’t surprising.
Favorite- vanilla, it's just rainin’, if you wanna hurt somebody, grand canyon, the rest
Least Favorite- Blame It On My Broken Heart, lose you again (ft. Parmalee), Honey, I Will (When You Don't) [ft. Dylan Marlowe]
7. Lainey Wilson- Whirlwind
-Tracks: 14
-Time: 51 min.
-Subgenre: 2, 4, 3, 1
Jay Joyce has a house sound. Take it or leave it. I can’t shake the feeling that Lainey Wilson feels like she has always leaves something on the table re her album output. In this instance, the energy and personality mostly transfer to tape, but the accompaniment does its best job to distract you from that.
Favorite- In The Middle, Whiskey Colored Crayon
Least Favorite- Call A Cowboy, Counting Chickens, Ring Finger, Hang Tight Honey
8. Brad Tursi- Parallel Love
-Tracks: 10
-Time: 26
-Subgenre: 3, 4, 1
An intoxicatingly and absorbing listen. Thematic, deeply personal, wistfully reflective. A genuine contender for year end. Between this and the Shawna Thompson record later in this piece, it really makes you think about how much talent gets wasted trying to fit into mainstream boxes.
Favorite- Church Bells And Train Whistles, Question The Universe, Crazy Life
Least Favorite- Oh Darlin’ (The interludes add thematic flair but aren’t much to write home about. Just stripped down demos.)
9. Sierra Ferrell- Trail Of Flowers
-Tracks: 12
-Time: 37 min.
-Subgenre: 1, 2, 3, 4
Notable efficiency in lyricism packs more emotional heft per bar than most. The curious blend of jazzy trills, ragtime fills, mid-century country-pop gloss meets bluegrass sounds like a more jarring mashup then it actually is as Ferrell's charismatic tone provides the connective tissue. Both timeless and modern, Ferrell stands out from the Americana pack as a singer with clear identity beyond the now hoary cliches that oft infect the subgenre.
Favorite- Dollar Bill Bar, Fox Hunt, Chittlin’ Cookin’ Time in Cheatham County, Wish You Well,
Least Favorite- I Can Drive You Crazy
10. George Strait- Cowboys And Dreamers
-Tracks: 13
-Time: 47
-Subgenre: 1, 3
The King is back….. albeit with a rocky result. The back half is significantly better, as it plays to late stage George’s strengths. The front end aims for a contemporary twist on the classic strait laced sound and it struggles.
Favorite- People Get Hurt Sometimes, Honky Tonk Hall Of Fame (ft. Chris Stapleton), The Little Things, Rent
Least Favorite- Three Drinks Down, MIA in Mia
11. Cactus Blossoms- Every Time I Think Of You
-Tracks: 10
-Time: 36
-Subgenre: 3, 1, 4
The best-in-class mellow folksy Americana group returns. Seems they finally answered the question of “can you be too mellow?” Incredible asmr, but it fails to grab attention. Unfortunate because the lyrics and ideas discussed herein are not badly executed. It's just so sleepy.
Favorite- Somethings Got A Hold On Me, Honey I'm Homeless
Least Favorite- Every Time I Think Of You
12. Warren Zeiders- Relapse
-Tracks: 10
-Time: 31 min.
-Subgenre: 2, 5, 3
Brash, bland Nickelback-core country rock. Zeiders frustratingly flashes a few moments that reveal what his tough and textured vocals could do if wrapped in a more befitting production, but instead it's buried under absolute layers of canned rock guitar.
Favorite- High Desert Road
Least Favorite- Relapse, Death Of A Cowboy, Love On The Line
13. A Thousand Horses- Outside
-Tracks: 11
-Time: 39 min.
-Subgenre: 2, 3
Textured Jon Randall produced country rock. A step up from the bland Dave Cobb aesthetic of their previous project. Quality southern rock project. Compares favorably to much of the recent output in that slice of the modern rock world.
Favorite- Summer, Sad Country Songs (ft Charles Kelly), Room Full Of Strangers, Southeastern Stomp
Least Favorite- Goin' Down
14. Max McNown- Willfully Blind
-Tracks- 7
-Time- 22 min.
-Subgenre- 3, 4, 1
Rapid EP follow up to full length record from earlier in the year. Mostly continues along the same style, modern folk pop meets country but now with more emphasis on the lower end of his vocal register. The writing is less scattershot here. The tighter focus works. I like the direction McKnown is heading in.
Favorite- Macbeth
Least Favorite- The acoustic renditions don’t really add much, because it wasn’t all that overproduced on the original cuts.
15. Shawna Thompson- Lean On Neon
-Tracks- 13
-Time- 42
-Subgenre- 1
Wow. When the news dropped that Thompson was planning to drop a solo project, a seeped in the bones traditional country record was the last thing anyone expected. I guess you can chalk it up to Nashville formula-icing another bona fide country talent because Thompson sparkles on this record. None of the little details were missed here. The elevated result speaks for itself.
Favorite- Yes Ma'am (He Found Me In A Honky Tonk), Bama Clay, Lonesome And Then Some, Together Again
Least Favorite- Burn It Down
Thanks for reading! Just managed to slip this one in under the monthly deadline. Hope you enjoyed!
-Joe