Tag Archives: country pop

Interviews & Features

Ryan & Rory: ‘It felt like they were listening with arms wide open!’

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We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing country duo’s Ryan and Rory at the Long Road the other week! Check out as we chat about the UK scene and their new album plans!

We chatted about a year ago now so, essentially, how’s the last year gone?

Ryan: Man, it’s crazy. It’s been pretty crazy. We’ve recorded an album!

Yes. I remember you kind of teasing it when we chatted!

Rory: Yeah, may or, maybe not be coming out next year. May, maybe not be early next year. I mean, I don’t know what we can say, but…Yeah, we’ve been playing a lot of shows. We’ve been, like we said, working on new music. We put the single out this past Friday, ‘Beer Wants Me’.

Yes, of course. Yeah!

Rory: We knew we were coming over here and we were like, this is the best way to celebrate this, to give it a turn and push that boat off the dock here in the UK for ‘Beer Wants Me’. Exciting!

Is that going to be on the album then? Is that the first single from that?

Ryan: Yeah, it’ll be on the album. It’s the beginning of our new chapter!

You’ve got two sets today as well, right? You’re on there and then the afterparty!

Ryan: Yeah, Main stage at 11 O’clock.

Long day.

Rory: It is what we’re here for. Long days.
Exactly. Long Road, long day!

Check out our last interview with them here!

What can we expect from either? Is there going to be some differences between the sets? I feel like tonight’s is a bit shorter, right?

Rory: It’s shorter. It’s going to be like probably a little more high energy for the second set, but the first set is going to be all gas, no breaks. First set’s just, a good mix of you know, our songs that are out and then we have some new tunes coming out, a lot of new ones, which is nice!

I was talking to Zandi Holup yesterday about how country seems a lot more accepting of playing unreleased stuff than a lot of the other genres I’ve noticed. Like it’s really cool that people will dry run a new song live!

Ryan: We noticed that! So our first trip over here like six months ago or whatever, I mean, almost all that music is new to the people we’re playing for and it didn’t feel that way! It felt like they were listening with arms wide open.

Rory: Yeah, it was wild by the third set I was like, man, they know the words to some of this!

What can you kind of make comparison-wise from the scene back home compared to out here? Are there any similarities or differences?

Yeah, I mean there’s definitely some similarities and differences. The difference I’ve noticed is like here, we mistook the very first time for the attentive listening. We thought like maybe the energy wasn’t high energy. Because it was such attentive listening, and then by the next song everyone loves it. They don’t hate us. They were just really listening. So, that difference is pretty key, I’ve noticed!

Yeah, I have had a few people say that, actually. I feel like I need to head out to you guys and catch a country show now just to see the differences!

Oh, definitely. Have you been to Nashville?

No, I really want to!

It’s, it’s worth it. It’s rowdy dude!

It’d definitely be cool. I’ve done a few shows in the US, but not country, so that’d be cool.

Gotcha. Okay. The country ones are the most fun!

Check out our review of them live here!

You’ve kind of touched a little bit on the album. Is there anything more we can expect? Are there any interesting twists and turns on it compared to the stuff you’ve put out so far?

Rory: Yeah, so the record we feel like is the most complete picture of music we’ve been able to put together. We shot the video for ‘Beer Wants Me’ here on this trip, so we’re still filming it!

Oh wow, you’re getting some clips today? That’ll be cool.

Yeah! You guys are going to be in it today and tonight! It’s going to be a UK exclusive ‘Beer Wants Me’ video, which is very cool. But the record is… it almost picked itself. We’re so proud of all the songs and there wasn’t a disagreement about which one should be on there!

Have you guys got quite a busy year after you get home then? Are there any shows coming up?

Yeah, we do, for sure. We’re going to be putting out some new music, one more before the new year and then a lot of new stuff next year. We’re going to be going to radio, so the full, the whole nine yards.

Nice busy year, then!

Ryan: Yeah, it’s going to be busy as it gets!

Is there anyone you’d want to collaborate with in a writing room?

Yeah, for sure! Our dream collab is Lainey Wilson, for sure.

That’d be cool!

I think she’s like triple threat artist. Definitely one of our dream collabs. We already had a dream come true with Jamie Johnson, we have a song out with him. That was, that was pretty damn cool.

Thomas Rhett at the board. And we might want a song with Kenny one day.

And we’ll just say it, we’re Ella Fellas! She’s cool!

I guess that probably leads quite nicely to our next question of if you had a dream tour you’d want to be a part of. I imagine at least like Ella, Lainey maybe?

Yeah, I think either one of those, I’d be like, I don’t know if I’d believe it’s real. But that, I mean, man, the thing about country is we love so many artists, like there’s a lot of dream tours, like there’s a lot of them. Whoever we can have a good time with, honestly, who we’d enjoy to hang out with. We love, you know, getting to hang out after the show, going golfing before soundcheck, and you know, going and exploring a new town, meeting new people, that kind of thing, so wherever it gets us out and about! The hang is everything!

Then are there at least tentative plans to come back out next year, I imagine?

So, just like last time, we immediately started working on this trip the last time we were here, so we’re already talking about it. We’ve been kind of checking around for what would we be able to do show-wise and what cities and what not. But no, the plan is always to come back, because we’ve just had such a great time!

Ryan: And yeah, the move would be maybe putting out a new record and then come back over here! You know, one after the other.

Interviews & Features

Hunter Brothers: ‘You need to be able to find those points of difference enough so that you have those unique perspectives while it’s also cohesive as a group!’

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We had the pleasure of chatting to 1/5th of the wonderful Hunter Brothers a couple of weeks back about their latest EP and touring plans! Check it out below!

The EPs been out a few weeks now. It seems to have gone down really well!

Well I hope so! You don’t always see all of the press or everybody’s internal dialogue so to speak, but what people have expressed has been positive so far! We’re grateful for that!

Is there a particular theme around the release? The title kinda ties into the songs all sounding a little different!

Yeah, definitely! I think this was an exploration sonically, of a few different directions. You have five siblings in a band, so to assume everything is gonna be one-sided is definitely not gonna be the case! We do share a lot in common, but there’s definitely the different influences that everyone pulls into the band as well. Our family alone, there’s going to be all kinda of county within that sphere. But then when you look at the world as a whole, or even national landscape, how do you define country? Or story is very country, we come from the middle of nowhere, grew up farming, but we’ve also had people say we look like we’re from New York!

That is definitely a part of the idea there, but also I think it’s a compilation of songs that we’ve been gathering for a period of time. We took a trip down to Nashville in January and started incorporating more things like the fiddle, or different sounds just to continue to evolve in music and enjoy where it’s going. Not just get stuck in the same thing all the time!

What’s the writing process like for you guys? I imagine working with your family you maybe get a little more leeway?

There’s pros and cons to everything. The pro is that you have these different perspectives that have similarities and shared life experiences. When you’re saying certain things the other can quite quickly deduce and understand what you’re saying. But also you need to be able to find those points of difference enough so that you have those unique perspectives while it’s also cohesive as a group. But that’s the case for everything, right? Sometimes when you’re writing with someone new they might see things pretty similarly to you despite just meeting you, they just get you. You develop friendships in Nashville and you tend to go back to those people who creatively you can collaborate with. As siblings, sometimes if you have all of us in a writing room, it’s a lot to process! If you have too many cooks in the kitchen, sometimes it can get a little overwhelming for certain members.

It’s still crazy to me, coming from outside of country, to see the Nashville writing scene. It’s really fascinating!

Yeah it is! No songwriters approaches something exactly the same way as the next one; it’s artistic expression at the end of the day. I think that’s what continued to shift things and mix things up a bit, you get lots of different perspectives. The learning part of it is how do you hold space for three or four peoples opinions at the same time? I think that’s really an art form in of itself. It’s one thing to write something in your notebook by yourself at home but to allow that creativity to be accessible to multiple people and have those collaborations come organically is art.

There’s a couple of collaborations on the EP. How did the Latham one come about?

So that was one of the fun things about this project: we’ve done collaborations but not recently. So with this project as just an EP, we hit two of them! That was fun! The one with Latham, it came about in a bit of a roundabout way, it wasn’t like we knew each other. It was actually one of those things where we needed a specific voice for that part, and we knew one of us were going to be able to pull that off! I am not a rapper! I can spread my wings into R&B and pop, but rap is not one of them! I’m pretty sure I did actually try one time in the studio and it was awful. I’m pretty sure my brother kept that sound bite somewhere for blackmail!

Latham was the option that ended up working out. We can’t tour with him in this next leg of tour but we do have screens so we welcomed him onto the stage the way we could! We didn’t think any of us could pull off that part properly. That’s where the country roots come in, you’ve definitely gotta know when to let someone else take the wheel. I think what’s interesting about that, going back to the title All Kinds of Country, having collaborations on this project was the most relevant time to do so! The title is sharing that it’s for everybody!

I feel like country’s become a lot more broad the last couple of years since it’s taken off again, too. You’ve got the traditional stuff but then you also have country rock making a comeback and more hip-hop infused stuff… there’s everything!

Yeah, totally! and when you ask that question ‘how do you define country’, it’s a pretty open-ended question. Is it the sound? Is it how they present themselves? Is it their story? I do think that when I evaluate that as a whole, storytelling is largely what the genre is about. I think that that’s the theme that continues forward. Music is quite fluid, is a C note a country note? But I think one thing I see is that consistent thread in country is a lot of it is about storytelling, sharing perspective and life experiences. The narrative is incredibly important. And now more than ever people can access others’ lives and see what their background is. But it’s an interesting topic, and I’m quite pleased that ended up being the title of the EP, honestly!

Even just the location! We have plenty of country artists starting up over here. And we still very much associate the genre with the South of the US, but then it’s a massive genre in Canada!

Canada is a large country from a landmass standpoint, but population-wise it’s not that vast, so you get to know the people in the industry. A lot of us are friends with each other and it’s great to watch the growth and progress of each act who’s going through the difficulty of economic times and the touring process just like you! I feel like Canada has multiple different cultures living across each Province even, and that’s interesting as when you’re presenting a show, they maybe interpret it through multiple angles. Music and art is a very interesting field!

In terms of the EP, was it always set to be that length, or is there an album of songs floating around for the future?

Yes, we actually do have other songs that are going to be added to this project. Nowadays when it comes to releases there are so many different ways people do it. Some are releasing music constantly while some are more album specific or there’s EPs, or sometimes when you just feel the moment. Some songs hold relevance at a certain moment in time and you figure out how to package them up later. For us we wanted to release new music that we were preparing and getting ready. Our deadline was to have an EP ready by the time we were touring. Then there are other songs that I’m excited to record that will likely round out the project as a whole, or more this chapter. They have similar directions to them, even if the pieces have different sounds to them. I think the songs that are still to be recorded will flow into a similar space that this project is currently living in.

Have you got much planned in for next year?

There’s some shows that are starting to come on the books. Month to month there’s ones that we have to see if we can make work schedule-wise, we have a lot of moving parts. But yeah, that’s starting to happen, and then new music obviously. I think next year is gonna be a year of creatively exploring that next chapter. When you’re in between touring seasons is when you really get to carve out that creative side of things!

Any plans to come to the UK any times soon?

We’ve had this question multiple times now… I would absolutely love to make that happen! We’ve never played there before so I imagine everyone would absolutely love to. I think it all comes down to timing and opportunities, but honestly I think people from the UK just sound beautiful rich, I always wanted that type of accent! I wanna come hang out with people way cooler than me!

I would love to make the trek out there so hopefully we can make that happen soon!

Reviews

Second Wind: Does Alexandra Kay Top Her Debut?

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The sophomore release from fast-rising country star Alexandra Kay is released this upcoming Friday. Her name has been seemingly everywhere the last couple of years so my anticipation for the release is pretty high! I’m familiar with at least a couple of the singles and love what I’ve heard so far, so join me in checking out what the rest of the album has in store for us!

Starting with some beautiful, folky strings, Kay’s beautiful vocals soon come in over the top of a great acoustic chord progression for ‘Better Off’. It instantly gives off vibes of Carole King or Paula Cole in the best ways. It builds up perfectly into a powerful, bittersweet chorus, and one that will be stuck in my head for days to come! The whole song is beautifully bittersweet, and is a damn powerful opener to the album, setting the tone rather perfectly!

‘Nobody’ picks up the energy a bit, having more of an Americana feel to it than the folky previous song. The driving bass drum is excellent, and the layers throughout from all the different strings is honestly phenomenal song production. It once again builds to a massive chorus, one definitely designed to be played to huge festival crowds. I’m honestly shocked it hasn’t been a single already because it’s hugely catchy and would do amazingly on the radio. Hopefully it’s a post release one! It gives off more Janet Devlin or Caylee Hammack vibes this time, which I love just as much. It’s a simple arrangement and in and out in under three minutes, but is a fantastic song and an easy early highlight!

‘Straight for the Heart’ changes the pace yet again, this time feeling more like a straight up radio-country track. It’s got a bit of a rock edge to it too, the chorus being massive, the distorted guitars adding a lot to the sound. It’s easy to see why it was chosen as a single and is doing incredibly already on that front. It’s got a little bit of the good Taylor Swift era to it, or even Erin Kinsey. Heck, we even get some awesome guitar soloing tucked away behind some of the vocals, which adds and even greater layer to it. This is another phenomenal track, and the second that easily makes it onto our playlist, it’s that good!

The energy drops back down with ‘Right Now’. It’s a beautiful modern country ballad, the focus on the acoustic guitar, electronic beats and Kay’s utterly incredible vocals. It’s a similar story on tracks like ‘Old Me’. Both are fantastic tracks in their own right, and though I am not usually into the more electronic based drums, they fit both of these songs perfectly. And of course, lyrically and vocally, Kay once again knocks it out of the park.

Speaking of ballads, there are a few more throughout. From ‘Hell Right’ to ‘The Last’ to the closer, there are some excellent, acoustic-based country ballads on this album! All three are excellent tracks in their own right, and are only grouped together as they are pretty similar and I don’t want to repeat myself over and over here, gushing too hard over her! They’re all packed full of amazing lyrics, beautiful choruses and some great instrumentation. The strings and piano on the latter give it the perfect finale feel to it, while the former is another big highlight for me! Heck, ‘Measure of a Man’ is also pretty ballad-like, though it definitely also has more of a rock edge to it like ‘Straight for the Heart’ does. I’d definitely put it up there with that track in terms of quality, too!

Tracks like ‘Tomorrow Problems’ and ‘Feminine Energy’ are more like that mid 2000s pop-rock country style that it’s so hard not to love. Catchy, bouncy songs about having a good time is what country is all about out, and both of these do that to perfection. They’re both awesome songs and a style that Kay does so well, showing that she really is multi-talented in the country world! Both are big high points of the album too, with the latter even having another great guitar solo in it. I haven’t spoke enough about it yet, but her band have also killed it on this album, from start to finish!

The final two tracks from the album, ‘Big Boy Boots’ and lead single ‘Cupid’s a Cowgirl’, give off similar Americana-pop-rock energy that I honestly love. She manages to let loose a little with both tracks, her attitude coming out perfectly. Of course the single is an excellent track, but the former is just as good as it, and could very well be a big single in its own right. However, both songs are incredible and once again huge highlights on an album honestly packed full of them!

Overall: This is an incredible country album! We sadly missed her debut release when it dropped, but having gone back and revisited it since I do enjoy it. However, this is very much a step up from that, Kay really hitting her stride in a massive way with this album. There isn’t a bad song on the album and some of them are easily up there with some of the best country tracks of the year. It’s very easy to see why she’s become such a big name so fast, and is quickly establishing herself to be one of the biggest names in the genre in just a few years! I can’t recommend this enough to anyone even slightly into country music, check it out immediately!

The Score: 9/10

Features, Reviews

The Long Road 2025: The Big Bad Review – Day 3!

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The final day of the festival opened as equally chilled as the others with The Wranglers and Steady Habits. The former was somehow about our only trip over to the Showground of the weekend, but were a fantastic acoustic duo that could easily make it onto the Front Porch or beyond in a year or two. The latter was on said Front Porch stage, and gave similar vibes to Ferrari in that kinda acoustic indie-Americana thang. However, they brought a full band, which was great for so early on in the day on a smaller stage. They made some great music, whether it was more stripped-back, slower acoustics numbers or full-band rock tracks. Arguably, they’d have done even better with a better slot! Another band that I’d checked out a bit of beforehand but have come away loving and can’t wait for the new album!

Evan Bartels absolutely blew me away on the Interstate stage. I loved his EP when I checked it out so knew I had to head to one of his sets on the Sunday, but wasn’t expecting it to be quite that good! For one man and one guitar, the sheer sound and emotion he portrayed was insane. The man sings like he’s had 200 years of hard life experiences, and is one of the best storytellers I’ve ever seen live. Even as he just spoke between songs, and during our interview (stay tuned soon), I got lost in his words; he’s a captivating man. His set went by in a flash and he played to a pretty packed out tent, everyone being locked onto him throughout. He’s another one that got a tear or two out of me, just like the other Evan. From his incredible vocals to insane lyrics and the guitar that fits it perfectly, it was honestly phenomenal. If anyone reading this is at all into old-school, true country music, you have to check him out immediately. Another massive weekend highlight.

Our good friends These Wicked Rivers tore the roof off of Buddy’s, next. Heavy for the festival, for sure, but playing to a pretty packed out crowd non the less, Rivers owned their time on the stage. Whether it was heavier numbers like ‘Testify’ or ‘Shine On’ or more ballad-tracks like ‘When the War is Won’, the crowd ate up everything the band lay down. I’ve loved them for years, so seeing them on a bit more of an out-of-the-box stage like this and killing it is really amazing to see. The band played their asses off for the whole set, with John’s vocals sounding as great as ever and the rest of the band putting on a fantastic show. Hopefully this is the start of something awesome for the band in the country sphere, as it will help two worlds that we cover quite a lot get closer!

Alyssa Bonagura was on Buddy’s after, continuing on the Snakefarm takeover of the stage. It was another slightly heavier British artist, but slightly more on the country-pop end of things. She was another excellent set, somehow sounding exactly like she does on track live, which is an incredible feat in this sort of music. She’s another artist that could have done with a bigger platform, but also perfectly fit for the smaller, packed out crowd at Buddy’s. We’ve spent a lot of time there this year and it’s quickly becoming one of my favourite stages; from the setting to the sound to the general setup, it’s all awesome. Alyssa will surely follow Kezia in becoming a massive name in the UK country scene sooner rather than later!

Erin Kinsey blew the metaphorical roof off the place on the joint at the Rhinstone stage. Flying in pretty last minute by the sounds of things, you wouldn’t have told she was in Germany earlier that day, as she sounded fantastic and had all the energy in the world. And plus, she was HEAVY, dude. And even if this wasn’t coming from a guy who’s big into rock and metal, I’d say in a good way! It helped that the stage was perfectly loud on the Sunday, but yeah, the guitars were distorted, the bass thumping and her drummer was smacking the shit out of his skins. It really set her apart from the other women around her in the scene who she could be compared to. She goes rockier on her latest album, but I wasn’t expecting it to translate this well live! ‘Matchmaker’ was a personal highlight of mine, but the set was jam packed full of awesome tracks that the crowd ate up! Hopefully she’s over here more regularly as I’d love to see her again, hopefully at her own show, soon!

I went into The White Buffalo not quite knowing what to expect, outside of a more slower, Americana-style thing similar to Uncle Lucius. What I got was not that, but was even better! There were certainly tracks like that, but there band also got dark and heavy in the best ways. It almost boarded on the heavier end of grunge, which was sick! And, on top of that, the band were full of energy, and put on one hell of a show considering it was just them and their instruments. I love how heavy the Sunday ended up, almost feeling more like a Southern rock festival than anything else, and Buffalo were definitely a highlight in amongst that. They’re another band that I would LOVE to see again, and need to ASAP.

Kim Churchill rocked the hell out of his solo performance on the Front Porch stage. Up against some steep competition on other stages, the Aussie native still drew a pretty great crowd for what again felt like a closer, more intimate gig. His voice was amazing, and the sheer amount of other stuff he had going on at the same time really filled out the sound (I’m a sucker for a harmonica). I’d be curious to see if he plays with a full band back home, and how that would sound, but for now the acoustic solo stuff was awesome, and a fitting change of pace for us on a pretty high energy day!

It was at this point that, as we got a drink, we quickly headed to check out a bit of the dog show. Watching them all getting distracted by toys instead of running to their owners was very cute!

The UK country legend Kezia Gill played to a packed out Buddy’s, completing her mission to play every stage at the festival (well, aside from the Hitching Post now). The stage was, of course, packed out, as she was definitely ‘too big’ for the setting. However, it made it even more rowdy, and almost everyone knew so much of what she was playing, and loving every minute. We were no different. Somehow this is the first time we’ve had the chance to see Kezia and it’s very easy to see why she has such a fantastic reputation: she was really great live! Rattling through some of her biggest and best songs to an adoring crowd that have watched her grow alongside the scene over the last few years. She’s a fantastic front woman and her voice more than hold up live. If I had any complaint at all, and it’s a super minor one, is that she’s very straight-forward in terms of her sound, and on a day where everything is a little out there and different, it felt almost safe. Still, that’s hardly Kezia’s fault, and she still put on a blinder of a set.

The controversial James Bay closed out the main show on the Sunday. The amount of arguments I’ve seen that he doesn’t fit the festival, that he isn’t country so he shouldn’t be there… I think he proved a lot of the haters wrong on Sunday night. Despite being sick, he still put on an utterly fantastic show, rattling through so many of his incredible hits and doing so in style. Despite not playing my favourite song of his (‘Give me the Reason’), he still hit so many amazing songs, from his hits ‘Let It Go’ and ‘Hold Back the River’ to deeper cuts like ‘Scars’ and ‘Wanderlust’. And we got an absolutely incredible extended version of ‘Best Fake Smile’, complete with an amazing extended blues solo that really blew me away, and clearly James and the band were having a blast playing it. He’s such a professional, putting on a flawless show and coming across as such a genuine, likeable guy in the process. It was an incredible headline set fitting of the festival, and if it wasn’t for the fact that Drake was also present, he would have been headliner of the year. Anyone who’s still on the fence, I cannot recommend enough seeing him live, he puts on a fantastic show and you’d definitely be won over!

Alana Springsteen was the aftershow party artist of the Sunday, and closed out the whole weekend pretty fantastically. We caught her a couple of years ago and, much like FTF, it feels like she’s grown even more as a performer in the time since she’s been away. She put on a great, all too short set of some of her best hits, and performed them all perfectly, also sounding so close to her track stuff! I hated that I missed her full set earlier on, but at least I managed to check her out here. She brought just enough energy to the proceedings this late on, getting everyone who was exhausted still dancing and partying and singing along and having fun to close out a truly fantastic evening. That’s how it’s done!

And there we have it folks, three excellent days of country, roots, blues and Americana music. It really is one of the best festivals around currently, is family friendly and still has plenty of energy and room to grow. Again, a huge thanks and congrats to Baylen the whole team for putting on such an excellent weekend. Until next year!

<- Day 2

Features, Reviews

The Long Road 2025: The Big Bad Review – Day 2!

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Our second day started off with us stumbling vaguely hungoverly over to the Front Porch to catch rising star Halle Kearns. For just one woman and her guitar she sounded awesome, bringing a fantastic 2000s country-pop vibe to a festival that had clearly craved that sound until now. She had a pretty packed out crowd for so early in the day, and they definitely got more and more into it throughout. Her music is fantastic, as is her lyric-writing, and the duet she sung with her husband was beautiful! Sadly we missed her the day after living it up on the main stage, but it was nice to see her in this more stripped-back, chilled-out setting, and it fit her rather perfectly. I was a fan of a couple of her songs heading in, and she’s definitely made me want to dive into her catalogue more now I’m home!

P.S. I also got a ‘media comped’ Moonshine cocktail from the wonderful O’Donnell. Massive shoutout, they make some amazing drinks and I cannot praise them enough! May have played a little hackysack too with our drinks…

WE ARE WELLS FERRARI. Now that the formalities are out of the way, we got an ‘electric’ set from the pair on the Porch following Halle. And by that, they meant one of them would have an electric guitar, instead of both being on acoustics. A minor change but one that did shift their sound somewhat, making for an interesting second listen. And they were just as good as they were the night before; a pretty big compliment I’d say give that I enjoyed them both sober and not! A pretty similar set but still a lot of fun, and another duo I’d love bring a whole band back over here if they get the chance next time.

Griffin Brothers were up next on the Interstate. They were pretty good, and we went in almost completely blind. The set was fairly heavy on covers, which were great, but I loved their original stuff just as much! It was sadly a bit of a flying visit around interviews, so I’d love to check them out again at some point when I can pay more attention, but I’ll certainly be checking them out on track coming out of this!

Our first trip to Rhinestone of the day came curtesy of the overnight Irish sensation Gareth. We’d already had the pleasure of seeing him earlier this year, supporting Kip Moore, so were eager to see him again! He was great yet again, though I do feel he was maybe a touch nervous. Heck, how couldn’t you be, especially as a newer artist! He still sounded excellent, but I do think his set in Birmingham was just a smidge better. Still, his songs are amazing, they were performed great and it all really packed a punch on a stage that really nailed the sound for a lot of the weekend. He’s going to be a massive name in business sooner rather than later, that’s clear to see and hear, and it’s awesome to get to see him right at the start of that journey.

I wanted to quickly take some time out to once again praise some incredible artists we saw a song or two of in passing on the Front Porch. David Unlayao was one of the artists I was gutted to miss a full set of, & Rissi Palmer is someone I’m so shocked I’ve somehow never seen before in all my years heading to TLR. Both were great and far better live than I expected them to be! Rissi is a legend in the festival world at this point, and her ‘Southern Soul’ styling was amazing and something I am already desperate to see more of! Meanwhile, David’s pop-country vibe translated surprisingly well to the smaller stage, though the full All-Stars band backing him may have helped there! Both are awesome artists that are well worth checking out, and I have to see them both properly soon!

Next up was maybe my most anticipated set of the weekend, Evan Honer. To say he knocked it out of the park may be an understatement. He had me laughing, crying and covered in goosebumps for a good majority of the set! Right from the bittersweet opener of ‘Nowhere Fast’ I knew I was in for something special, and then he just kept going with incredible song after incredible song! ‘Mr Myers’ would have made me cry anyway, but inviting the powerful voice of Charles Wesley Godwin on to help out for the first time live utterly destroyed me. Following that up with ‘Take me as I Come’ was a one-two gut punch in the best way. Then to close out on ‘Foolin’ Ourselves’ and ‘idk shit about cars’ whipped the crowd into a deserved frenzy. I wasn’t entirely sure how he would end up going down at this sort of festival, but the tent was packed and they hung on every single word he sung. Oh, I almost forgot about him two stepping with We Are Wells Ferrari, another fun stand-out moment on a set packed full of them. A good time but also an emotional one, and easily one of the best sets of the weekend for me. I NEED to see Evan again immediately!

Larry Fleet was up next on the Rhinestone, his chilled-out, good-guy energy making for a perfect relaxed atmosphere. I have to say he’s not something I’d listen to massively often on track, but live he was amazing to sit back and listen to and enjoy with a drink! His voice is absolutely amazing and translates perfectly into a live setting. And oh my god, how have I gotten this far without talking about Crazy Legs?! What a guy, best live performer I’ve ever seen, I’mma have to take lessons and stretch before gigs now! Another awesome set arguably at the best time for it!

Charles Wesley Godwin played to an absolutely packed out Interstate tent that hung on his every note. He arguably could have been put on the main stage, but something about the darker, roofed setting just worked perfectly for him! It was another set that I just got lost in; stood in the middle of a packed out crowd just swaying and singing along to the music. Honestly, it was all awesome too, it’s hard to pick out any specific song that was between than the rest. He’s back out here soon I believe with Evan Bartels (more overleaf) and I may have to get a ticket! He’s amazing live and I’d recommend anyone even slightly curious to go!

Midland closed out the main show in typically old-school style. Bringing the smoky vegas vibes as much as the dive bar saloon ones, it was a pretty perfect way to round out the Saturday with a little bit of everything. The harmonies once again were spot on, as expected. The playing throughout was exception, from the main three to the others. From recent stuff like ‘Barely Blue’ to classics like ‘Drinking Problem’ and even their awesome cover of classic ‘Boot Scooting Boogie’, it was all SO GOOD. The band are consummate professionals, putting on a fantastic show that highlighted every member of the band perfectly, and was a lot of fun to watch. Heck, when a crowd member took a fall towards the end of the set, they even paused the show until the paramedics got them out, a fantastic, admirable move, and they all seemed genuinely concerned. That’s what the festival is all about, care and humanity, and the band encapsulated that perfectly. Yet another awesome set, and the perfect way to headline this festival!

An artist that we fell in love with our very first year there, Everette finally returned, this time as a solo(ish) artist. Closing out the day with an hour-long afterparty full of awesome songs and good times, he was another that finished things off perfectly. He and his new guitarist (on loan from Larry Fleet) sounded awesome together. Weather it was old favourites like ‘Dang the Whiskey’, ‘Woo Hoo Hoo’ and even ‘Kings of the Dairy Queen Parking Lot’(!) or newer stuff like ‘High and Lonesome’ and ‘Fright Train’, there was so much to love! Then there were the moments he brung touring partner Larry Fleet on himself, first to do a song they’d written together and then later as the whole band to sing ‘Free Fallin’’ with the crowd. The whole thing was just awesome! Brent’s voice is like butter and he’s an amazing frontman and songwriter, so this was the perfect way to close things for the Saturday!

<- Day 1

Day 3 ->

Features, Reviews

The Long Road 2025: The Big Bad Review!

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Our fourth year at our favourite festival, and what a fantastic year it was yet again! While a touch controversial on the lineup side of things, the growing country-Americana-roots festival provides so much entertainment in one of the nicest environments around, and we had a blast from start to end. Join us in checking out everything that went down!

First, a very big thank you to every single member of not just the Long Road staffing, but also the wonderful Lime Tree Music. I was looked after all weekend and the staff all did a cracking job. The place was clean and full of smiles throughout, and the vibe of the festival is incredibly hard to top!

Our first foray into the festival came in two parts, really. First we headed up to the brand new Hitching Post stage. It’s an amazing addition to the festival, giving it the perfect space for things like the conversations with artists, the line dancing classes and plenty more. It fit the vibe and aesthetic of the festival perfectly, and it seems to be a very popular introduction. We caught our new friends Two Ways Home presenting their Round-Up. Sadly we didn’t manage to catch all of it, but saw a couple of their songs and loved it! We then headed over to the ever-awesome Buddy’s Good Time Bar to catch Madalitso Band. Sadly they were running late, so I could only stick around for a couple of their songs, too. However, they were also pretty damn enjoyable, and I wish I’d managed to stick around longer. Their talent and creativity is off the charts, and I know a few people pegged them as one of their favourites of the weekend.

After a quick interview we caught the first half of the first set on the Rhinestone stage, Liam St. John. I knew very little of his music heading into this, but came away as a huge fan! I wasn’t expecting it to be quite so heavy-blues which, as any sort of length reader of this site knows, is a big influence to me as a musician and a firm genre favourite. The guitar work was amazing, bringing a great/surprising amount of riffs on an early Friday, but his powerful, emotion-filled vocals were as much of a firm highlight. And the performance he put on matched it perfectly. Yeah, everything about this is awesome, and I immediately added his albums release date to our calendar as I definitely don’t want to miss diving deep into it! Hopefully it isn’t the last we see of him over here soon, as I’d LOVE to hear a full set, especially after the album’s release. Definitely a very nice surprise, and an early highlight!

After Liam we cut across to the Interstate stage for our good friends First Time Flyers. We’ve loved them since the last time they played a full set, and even had the chance to chat with them then. However, we sadly haven’t had the chance to see them since. Somehow, they have gotten even better! The harmonies have somehow gotten even tighter, and the band’s chemistry on stage is now undeniable. Their last outing at the festival was just their sixth live show together, and they have clearly grown and experienced a lot since then. And the new additions to the set were just as awesome as their old stuff, too! ‘Jump’ and ‘Stay’ were both amazing, while it’s incredibly easy to tell why ‘Primadonna’ is such a firm crowd favourite, it’s still stuck in my head days later! The band are getting one hell of a great reputation in the UK country scene, and with performances like this there is no wonder why! And this was set one of three over the weekend, so the fact that they put in so much energy and passion to this first set shows just how hard-working the quartet are. I said two years ago they are going to be a big band, and given the reception they got this last weekend, I think they are almost about there!

Back over to Buddy’s next, we saw the wonderful Janet Devlin. A far cry from nervous young girl from X Factor all those years back, Janet has battled through her demons and come out the other side a new woman. However, she has still maintained her amazing voice, and is one hell of a performer to boot. And the fact that she brought a lot of energy still to a more stripped-back, acoustic performance is great proof of that! Bringing her unique blend of traditional folk and modern country, the set was packed full of awesome songs, and some equally great stories told by the woman herself. I’d love to see her in a bigger setup with a full band, but I did also enjoy the more intimate setting here, and the crowd were loving it, too!

A brief trip out to the Front Porch stage and another couple of great tracks from Two Ways Home. Then, it was back into Buddy’s for a band that I was very excited for, Crowe Boys. Though it was just the titular brothers over without the full band backing them, with the sheer sound and emotion they produced you’d think they’d never need one! The sheer power of Ocie’s vocals, paired with Wes’ incredible harmonies, packs a phenomenal punch and packs out the sound around the guitar and banjo. And as I said, the emotion on display… ‘Brother Song’ honestly had me in tears and I’m so glad they played it! The band’s blend of Americana and indie music isn’t necessarily brand new, but the pair do it to perfection and it’s really awesome to see that as a genre it’s really gathering momentum. The small tent was packed and honestly hung on every word and note, it being a truly special experience. This band are gonna go hugely far, and it was an honour getting to see them in such an intimate setting. Another massive highlight of the weekend.

Now from one highlight to another, for two wildly different reasons! What more can I say about Drake Milligan that I haven’t already. He was maybe my favourite set of last year from any artist, and honestly he could very easily be the same again this year. I’ve never seen such a naturally charismatic performer before, so effortlessly holding a crowd in the palm of his hand. It’s one thing to do it to 1.5k people inside Manchester’s Ritz, it’s a whole other ballgame to do it to 10,000+ at an outdoor venue. And yet, here the 27-year old prodigy was, putting on a show the likes of which could rival the very best to ever do it. From opening on his hit ‘Sounds Like Something I’d Do’ (to the shock of most of the crowd) to riding through most of his album and EP, to some incredible covers of both Merle Haggard and of course Elvis, it was an hour and a half of incredible music. But everyone up on that stage worked their asses off, playing like their lives depended on it and looking like they genuinely had a blast doing so. The soloing was impeccable, and the ‘big band show’ element was very present. We even got some yet-unreleased ones, like already fan favourite ‘Slow Dancin’ to a Fast Song’ and the brand new (and set highlight) ‘Tumbleweed’. Everything about it was just incredible yet again, and I cannot recommend Drake more if I tried. Everyone should see him play live at least once in their lives, and he’s just going to keep getting bigger and bigger with the performance he puts on.

To close our night off in chilled-out style, we got an acoustic set from California’s own Wells Ferrari on the Front Porch. Or should that be ‘We Are Wells Ferrari’? I feel like I’ve been indoctrinated into some sort of cult, and I for one am fine with it! The duo sounded great, playing and singing their hearts out and hitting some incredible harmonies. That really seems to be the theme of this year’s edition of the festival; fantastic vocal harmonies. The pair were great fun to watch as they had a great laugh and joke with the crowd throughout, definitely closing out the night in style! And, it helped that they plated some amazing songs, too!

Day 2 ->

Reviews

Famous Back Home: Russel Dickerson is Back!

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The country-pop sensation himself is back with his fourth studio album and follow-up to last year’s Bones. Coming in at the tail end of the bro-country era, he quickly established himself and has become a household name, and not just back home! We even had the privilege of seeing him at The Long Road last year, and had a blast. So, of course we wanted to give this release a full review and really sink our teeth into it!

‘Dust’ is a beautiful, chilled-out way to open the album. It perfectly sets up Russel’s sound and what he’s all about; the perfect country-pop song! A simple acoustic guitar and electric drums verse builds to an expectedly massive, catchy chorus, like Dickerson does so perfectly. The lyrics are a little cheese-country, but so well written that it’s easy to look past. It’s a simple radio-friendly pop song, but an awesome Russel Dickerson song and the perfect way to open the album!

Next up is one of the handful of singles, ‘Sippin on Top of the World’. It’s got ever so slightly more of a rock edge to it, with the acoustic drums and a great guitar lead opening things up. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still about as rock as the Jonas Brothers, but it definitely has slightly more of an edge to it than the opener. The stripped-back verses lead to another huge, stadium-filling chorus. It’s easy to see why it’s such a big single already too, and was one hell a choice as one! It’s an excellent country song overall, and a very easy early highlight!

‘Happen to Me’ slows things down a little again, the guitar sound honestly giving a touch of a y’allternative vibe to it, especially with the pop-punk pre. It’s a nice change of pace for the album already that I honestly wasn’t expecting. It once again builds to another awesome, massive chorus, and immediately it’s another track that easily makes it onto our playlist.

‘Worth Your Wild’ is the most Russel Dickerson song I think I’ve ever heard, and I love it! It’s that perfect blend of country, pop and rock that he does so well, and is one of the best choruses he’s maybe ever done. It’s another that was an incredibly good choice to be a single, and has clearly done very well for him already! The lyrics here are pretty great too, and we even get a cheeky little guitar solo tucked away in the middle! It’s a strong contender for a ‘song for the rest of summer’ and is up there with one of my favourite he’s ever done, honestly.

The pace and energy chills back out massively for ‘Heard it in a Country Song’. It’s incrediblely simple in its arrangment of just some Spanish guitaring, basic electric drums and Russel’s amazing vocals. Honestly, it gives off slight Buffet vibes, but of course more modernised. Somewhere between that and Latin pop, and makes for a really interesting listen. There’s a surprising amount going on in the track too, with some piano and organ chiming in at times throughout, but it’s all so chilled it’s easy to miss. I love it as a change of pace as much as a track on its own!

Tracks like ‘Sunrise in my Silverado’, ‘For a Truck’ and ‘Love that I Love You’ are all more typical Russel songs and exactly what you’d expect from the pop-country legend at this point. All three are excellent tracks, with the latter specifically being another huge high point on the album, but there isn’t much variety through them. Still, they’re easy to listen to for sure, fit the album perfectly and are of course more beautiful love songs to his wife.

‘Never Leave’ is the ballad of the album, a stripped-back, simple, slower track that mainly focuses on Russel’s vocals, minimal instrumentation behind it. It’s a beautiful track, with the lyrics being a real focal point and being solid. And, while we’ve had slower tracks already, this again has a different feel and is another great change of pace. It’s Russel’s best vocal performance on the album, and if you like the slower stuff this is definitely one to check out!

‘Bones’ feels like a slightly cheek addition to the album, as it was the main track from his EP last year. It’s a good song and still fits onto the album pretty perfectly, but has obviously been out over a year in multiple different incarnations now. It might have been cool to have had it reworked for the album somehow, but then it may not have fit on the release so well.

’16 Me’ is another slower ballad-like song, but has a little more going on on it than ‘Never Leave’. Then, the albums title track and latest single takes us home in style, somehow feeling like a combination/culmination of most that came before. It’s on the slower end again, but that chorus is incredible, and it feels like the track builds towards it and around it perfectly. It’s another fantastic choice for a single and a really great way to close out the album, even if the last handful of songs have been on the slower side, now!

Overall: This is another really great addition to his growing discography. It feels like the man can’t put out anything bad at this point, and I’d put this up there alongside any of his other releases in terms of quality. He’s certainly not for everyone, but you know exactly what to expect heading into the album with him and he delivers every time, including here. It’s packed full of fun, catchy, emotional moments, and I’d recommend it to any country fan out there!

The Score: 8/10

Interviews & Features

John Morgan: ‘I’m excited to catch some success with those guys!’

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We had the pleasure of chatting to the wonderful John Morgan about his latest album, his songwriting process and his touring plans for 2025! Check it out below!

The album’s four months now, how’s it been since then?

Yeah man, it’s been great! We’ve been super busy but all good things. Yeah, it’s been a lot of fun, being on the back end of being done with the project. Sometimes it can get a little stressful, all that meeting deadlines and stuff, but it’s been great just getting to promote new music and give people a few different options on what I love and the sounds I’m into.

What’s it like putting an album out on your own, aside for writing for others?

Yeah, what brought me to Nashville was songwriting, I fell in love with that side of it. I always dreamed of being an artist at some point; I knew that day would come or it wouldn’t. Fortunately it came a lot sooner than I thought it would. It’s been a lot of fun, man. Like you say, to play my own stuff, put my own songs together, cut them the way I would cut them. I couldn’t be more thankful for the opportunity to get to do that, a lot of people don’t. It’s been a lot of fun!

Do you take a different approach to writing your solo stuff compared to writing for/with others?

I try not to, to be honest with you. I try to keep it the same. With having that three/four years of just being a songwriter when I moved to town, writing for other people, I didn’t quite figure out what my sound was, but I figured out what it wasn’t. So, when the time came to finally out this record together, I had a really good direction to where I wanted it to go. At that point it was just picking the songs. That was a lot of fun, kinda low stress, it was a blast. I got to be very hands on with this record, and I love being in the studio and being just dangerous enough the engineer that I am to lay something down and get to use some guitar work and stuff like that.

Are you still writing for other people now alongside your own stuff?

Yeah, yeah! I feel like going into a room with them, to me it’s worked a lot better and keeps the stress off of everyone in the room. It’s just writing the best idea. To me it doesn’t have to be ‘for me’ or ‘for you’, let’s just write the best idea that we can. It’ll find a home.

It’s always fascinated me, being more from the rock background where a band will get together and write their own stuff, so to talk to people (especially in the Nashville scene) who will just get together and write stuff and split it off to different artists is really cool!

It is. It’s odd in some ways, because of that it can get weird, but I try to eliminate any of that just because I don’t want people to feel pressured writing for me. Sometimes when that happens they hit it too much on the nose and it’s like ‘I’ve already got this’. That’s when you start running into that, so that’s why I just try to write the best thing possible.

Are you planning a follow-up at all?

Yeah man, I’m always putting projects together in my phone notes! I love going through songs and just filtering out songs that like… is this something I want to sing for the next 10 years? Is this a message I want to send out? Really having the time to go through that is awesome so I try to get a head-start on it whenever I can and have the songs ready to roll out whenever it’s time to go back in. We’re always killin’ it, man!

You’ve got quite a busy rest of the year planned, right?

Yeah! We’re going on a little fall tour, starting in October. Kinda all over the place, East Coast, West Coast, it’s gonna be a lot of fun. I’m bringing out some friends of mine for the Friends Like That Tour. We’re just gonna keep it casual. I love… we’re about to announce the guests for this tour but both are great acts; people who I think are great humans for one, but also just really talented people who haven’t got the spotlight I think the deserve. I’m just hoping this will benefit them in some way!

I imagine it’s pretty cool to get to hit the stage and play your own material live?

It’s wild going from playing to 300 chairs at a festival at 1pm to getting a better slot and playing at least close to dark and having a handful of people singing the lyrics back. There’s no better feeling! That’s why I’m out here, that’s what keeps me out there. If I was in it for any other reason I would have hung it up by now. I just love playing shows, and I get to play it with my band! We were all buddies and played in separate bands before. That means a lot too, I’m excited to catch some success with those guys, too!

Did they contribute to the album, too?

Yes, my bass player and drummer both played on that entire record. It was really fun. That’s what feels great about getting creative control; they were really cool with me having a direction and chasing it. A lot of that comes with earning that trust starting out as a songwriter and producer. Just having a little bit of that background gave them that trust in me to get it where it needs to go.

Do you have any plans/aspirations to come to the UK at all?

Always man! You guys have been such huge supporters of my music for so long. I love looking at the Spotify stats and just seeing all over the world who’s streaming my music. It’s pretty mind-boggling! I would love to get out there at some point and see you guys in person, that would be awesome!

It’s really taken off over here and in Europe in the last few years few years or so, so would definitely be cool!

Do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of?

I would love to… there’s a tonne of combos running through my head but obviously I would love to go on the road with Eric Church. Keith Urban’s another guy I’d love to be out with, he was another inspiration to me as a guitar player early on. I would love to do that. Maybe it’s Keith and Eric co-headlining, maybe Zach Top for direct support and then I’ll open!

I’ll be there, front row!

Do you have a song you wish you’d have written in the past?

That’s a great question! One of my favourite songs is an old Keith Whitley song, ‘I’m Over You’. That song, there’s just so much emotion in there which is so hard as a writer if you’re not feeling that emotion. That song, there’s was definitely emotion when writing that so I’ve always been intrigued. Hopefully I can wrote something close to that one day!

Reviews

Learn the Hard Way: Jordan Davis’ Best Album to Date?

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The incredible Jordan Davis is set to release his brand new third album tomorrow, and there was no way we weren’t checking this out early! Despite being a fan of his work, I’ve somehow never managed to check out a full album from the guy, so I’m excited to really dive in and see what he’s about, especially when he’s currently at the height of his career. He’s certainly one of the most interesting current newer guys, blending plenty of styles into his own sound. Without further ado, let’s jump in!

‘Her Way or the Highway’ opens things up pretty chilled, immediately giving off Kip Moore vibes in the best ways! It’s definitely country but has that awesome soft/pop rock feel to it too. It all builds perfectly to a MASSIVE chorus too, just made to be played to huge festival crowds. The lyrics are typical country stuff but so well written, fitting the vibe of the song perfectly. We even get a nice little guitar lead tucked away in the middle, too! It’s a really good choice to open the album, keeping the energy pretty high and telling the listener exactly who Jordan is and what they’re in for on this release. An easy early highlight track!

‘Bar None’ follows on from the opener perfectly, having the same energy as before but definitely leaning more into the country side of the style. The acoustic guitar work throughout is phenomenal, as are the harmonies on Jordan’s vocals, somehow making them even more catchy! It’s another fantastic chorus, too. It reminds me a little of ‘Tipsy’, but a bit more Americana leaning instead of hip-hop. It’s a simple track but amazing, and another that easily makes it onto our playlist. Two for two so far on awesome songs!

Next up is a beautiful ballad/duet, ‘Mess with Missing You no More’. It’s a great country breakup song, filled with some amazing vocals and lyrics and some great acoustic work again. Also, Carly Pearce is amazing on this song, her voice complimenting Jordan’s perfectly. We get another great guitar solo here too, short but channels the energy of the song in a great way. It almost gives off Slash vibes, which is definitely a good thing! It’s exactly what you’d expect from a radio country ballad; it’s been done a lot recently, but it’s still a fantastic song nonetheless. Definitely up there alongside the greats who’ve done a song like this recently.

The more pop sound returns with ‘In Case You Missed It’, giving off big Parmalee vibes. Still, it has a bit of a rocking chorus, it again being massive and hugely catchy. The same could be said about ‘Ain’t Enough Road’, ‘Memory Don’t Mess Around’ and ‘Turn This Truck Around’. All are great songs that are impossible to not have fun listening to, even if the latter is a little more of a ballad than the others. It’s a great style that I feel a lot of people still associate with the genre heavily to this day, and one that Jordan does amazingly.

Then, you have the slower, more acoustic ballads like ‘Son of a Gun’, ‘Jesus Wouldn’t Do’, ‘Keeping The World Away’ and ‘Know You Like That’. Again, all of them are amazing, providing a completely different feel to the previously mentioned tracks, and plenty of emotion throughout. The former and the latter are my personal favourites and, while it’s maybe one too many slower songs, they’re all good, and it’s a long enough release that I think it gets away with it. They’re also spread out pretty perfectly, the whole thing having a great flow to it and not feeling its length at all.

Songs like ‘Learn the Hard Way’ are slower still, but lean more on the pop end than the country, I’d say. They’re simple arrangements and have more electronic beats and sounds than a more acoustic style. While it is a sound that’s been around a little while now, towards the end of the bro-country era, I found myself associating it more with Redferrin or even Morgan Wallen. ‘I Ain’t Sayin’’, ‘Only All The Time’ and to a lesser extent, the closing track (though that feels like a combination of this and the ballad) are all pretty similar tracks. I tend to be a bit on the fence with this sort of style, but I ended up loving all of these tracks!

‘Good Gone Bad’ is an all out Southern rock song, and I fucking LOVE it. From the riffing to the massive feel to the overall drip of swagger and attitude, it’s all awesome and another massive album highlight! I know it’s definitely right up my street, but at the same time I’d recommend this to absolutely anyone into country, as it’s an excellently written track. Plus, it breaks up the album pretty perfect, being different to everything else on it and slapped almost right in the middle. Great stuff!

The last song to check out is another feature, this one with the amazing Marcus King. It’s another rocky number packed with some awesome guitaring and easily one of the best choruses on the whole album. Once again, the pair mesh so well, with this feeling as much a Marcus track as a Jordan one. Putting something such high energy so late on in the album is a great idea, and once again breaks things up perfectly before the slower closer. I’m sure this will come as no shock at all, but I loved this, and it’s another that easily makes it onto our Spotify; another big highlight!

Overall: This is an awesome album! I didn’t quite know what to expect heading into it, what side of Jordan we’d get, but there is plenty of variety throughout and it’s all done perfectly. I had a blast listening through in its entirety, and it certainly won’t be the only time I do that over the next couple of months. A must for any country or really rock fan out there, and it firmly roots him as yet another major player in the country world.

The Score: 8.5/10

Reviews

Tennessee Lightening: Ashley Monroe Hits it Out of the Park Yet Again!

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The incredible Ashley Monroe returns with her unique blend of country and Americana on her sixth solo album this coming Friday. Her first new long-form release in four years, it has a lot of hype surrounding it. I’ve been a fan of her a few years at this point, but have to admit generally I’m more familiar with her Pistol Annies work. So, it’ll be cool to hop into a full solo album and see what it’s like. It’s 17-track so is pretty long, but I’m sure there’ll be a lot to love!

A surprisingly ominous intro opens up the album and track ‘I’m Gonna Run’, it almost feeling a touch horror-esque before Ashley’s vocals come in over the top. Still, it almost has a bit of a Sinners vibe to it. It’s definitely country, but heavy on the gospel too. It’s awesome, and a great showcase of her vocal ability immediately. It also leads perfectly into the wonderfully chilled ‘Risen Road’. It gives off big vibes of Julian Taylor or ??, in the best way. It also gives slight Primal Scream vibes, but I can’t quite put my finger on why. And it all builds perfectly into a big, catchy chorus packed full of great vocal melodies and harmonies. A simple but great start to the album!

‘Closer’ continues the chilled vibes perfectly, but also has a slight more pop edge to it in places. The synth for the intro and choruses is a great touch and adds so much to the sound without overpowering anything. I hate to lump so much into this weird genre I feel I’ve generated, but it feels like ‘Gilmore Girls music’. And that is hardly a bad thing, it’s just pretty reminiscent of the likes of Paula Cole and Carole King. It once again builds perfectly into a fantastically catchy chorus, again completely with some amazing harmonies. It feels like it’s one that’s going to be stuck in my head for days to come! An easy early highlight track!

The first single is up next, and features country legend Marty Stuart, of all people! It has a little more of a traditional country twang to it because of Marty, and has a little more energy and bounce to it, too. I love Ashley’s vocals over the simple guitar to start, and again it builds perfectly up through a whole two verses and chorus before we get more with the harmonies in the second chorus. It’s a very simply arranged and written song, but fits together and with the album so well. I assume Marty’s contribution was the guitaring, and it would have been cool to also hear his vocals, but either way, it’s still a damn good song!

‘Magnolia’ is another huge highlight track of the album. It’s more of a dark, blues rock track than anything else, again giving off Sinners vibes. It’s a style I am very much into, and Ashley does it fantastically. It also still leads into a very fitting chorus, being somehow the perfectly combination of the track style and the vibe we’ve had from other choruses so far. And heck, we even get an awesome, Slash-esque guitar solo, being a big focus of the track which is always a surprise in country. The whole thing is awesome and definitely one I’d recommend checking out!

‘My Favourite Movie’ brings back the chilled out vibes, going back to the sound of ‘Closer’ again. It’s not a bad track at all, and the strings added a great, almost epic element to everything. However, that and songs like ‘Amen Love’, ‘Moth’, ‘That’s No Way to Say Goodbye’ and ‘Moon Child’ (not a Maiden cover) are all pretty similar in sound and energy. None are in any way bad, but this is a loooong album and there were bound to be repeat ideas, and I simply doing want to repeat myself over and over and make for a boring read! If you’re into the chilled, guitar and vocal centric style, check these out!

An almost pop-punk guitar riff runs through ‘Hot Rod Pipe Dream’. Ashley’s multi-tracked vocals kinda lessen that feel a little, but it still feels a little further from country and pretty fresh. it almost has more of an OLD-school punk vibe to it, which made for a really fun addition to the album, and something pretty left-field! It’s another easy highlight track, and something I hope Ashley considers doing more of moving forward!

‘There You Are’ is a beautiful, piano-based ballad. The emotion is rife thanks to Ashley’s amazing, powerful delivery. It is definitely yet another strong album highlight. Then you have the interesting mixing on ‘You and Me’; it feeling incredibly old-school with the vocals being so far back and grainy. It’s an interesting choice for sure, but works for the track and again helps it stand out against other similar but slightly less-interesting songs.

The other four tracks on the release all have various guest features on them, and all utilise them rather differently. The single featuring Brittney Spencer has some attitude and swing to it, almost having a vague hip-hop edge to it. It’s another fun song, and still has a slightly dark edge, both Ashley and Brittney’s vocals working so well together! Meanwhile ‘Recover’ with Karen Fairchild and ‘Blown Away’ with Brendan Benson are more like the style of a lot of the rest of the album. Still, both women and Benson all work perfectly together, and produce two great, slightly rockier/gospel songs! Then the final track of the album, with the awesome Armand Hutton, goes full on gospel, organ and all. While I’m not hugely into the message behind the song, there is no denying musically and from a writing perspective it’s fantastic. It’s amazing that she has gotten so maybe incredible guests to feature on this album, and all impress as they are different to the last!

Overall: I enjoyed this album! Yes, it was certainly a touch long, and there are a few songs that feel a touch repetitive. However, none of the songs are bad, and there are some honestly career highlight tracks scattered among the release. Ashley’s vocals and lyric writing are both on point as usual, and I’ll certainly be revisiting a lot of this a fair bit in the coming weeks and months. A must for any fans of the more chilled-out side of country music!

The Score: 8/10