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Reviews

Album Review: Trixie Mattel–One Stone

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Rating: 7.5/10

Rich O’Toole said yesterday (3/28) on Twitter that “the problem with country music right now is that people are listening with their eyes.” This is a problem with all of music and indeed our culture in general right now. He was probably framing the comment around mainstream listeners who aren’t paying attention to the music but rather the image of the artist, and yet this also perfectly illustrates the fact that you can’t, and shouldn’t, judge a book by its cover. It’s for that reason which I chose not to include cover art in this piece, just like with Midland. As with Midland, I know you’ve all seen–or at least have the easy ability of Googling–this album, and indeed the link at the bottom to purchase it will show you the cover in short order. It’s not that I think the cover, which will quickly explain that Trixie Mattel is the drag persona of Brian Firkus, reflects anything that Trixie should tone down; on the contrary, I saw some comments on SCM advising she remove the makeup in order to decrease the image marketing and possible shock value and perhaps reach more listeners, and to that, I would disagree. Rather, my point with this is symbolic and meant to further the most important lesson taught by this album and artist: that music, and especially country music, is meant for all, can break down all barriers and prejudices, and should be listened to without prejudgments based on well, anything.

So we put this record on without considering anything else, and we get a truly cool album. Mostly, it’s traditional, featuring lively fiddles, acoustic guitars, and some occasional horns to add some flavor. “Break Your Heart” adds some hand claps and could be considered the most modern, but that’s not really an issue except that it also suffers lyrically, but we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Even though it’s a traditional record, it’s fresh and charming, with the majority of the songs being fun, upbeat numbers. I wish most of Americana could take a lesson from this. And then, just when you think it’s all sort of light and breezy and doesn’t take itself too seriously, “Red Side of the Moon” arrives to toss that notion effectively out the window and show you that Trixie Mattel is really serious about this and can deliver a deeper, more emotional song as well.

And what an interesting way Trixie has with the English language, adding almost theatrical turns of phrase at times to create really clever bits of songwriting. Yes, an upbeat, vibrant record can also contain thoughtful songwriting…take a moment to digest this, all you artists that don’t inject life into your albums or somehow view fun as the opposite of substantive. With lines like “an hour hand moves faster with a scotch” in “Soldier” and “tell me little dear, if you only live here, did you really ever live at all?” in “Little Sister,” there are often little thought-provoking nuggets of songwriting that belie the cheerfulness of the songs. And then there’s the clever homage to songs like “Stand by Your Man,” “Ring of fire,” and “Neon Moon” in the track “The Well” which serves both to continue to establish Trixie as a lyricist and also to show that she has a knowledge and respect for the history of country music. That last is something many mainstream stars lack on an embarrassing level, or else choose to ignore, so seeing it here is encouraging.

It’s in light of this lyrical genius that “Break Your Heart” feels disappointing lyrically, because with a line like “I never meant to break your heart, but I’d do it again,” you’re a little perplexed. So Trixie didn’t mean to break this person’s heart, but given the chance, she’d do it all over? It’s confusing, and combined with the claps, it makes this song easily the weakest.

But overall, this is a really cool, fun little record. And more than that, it happily defies stereotypes in the best possible way: just by being itself and proving prejudice wrong. Things like this make more of a statement than any protest or advocacy because they break down barriers and remove ignorance. This music doesn’t preach, it just exists, and that’s really the best way to reach people. Instead of alienating an audience, this can draw listeners together in that way only music can. And as far as our beloved country music, with Trixie’s presence, it’s being carried to people who may never otherwise have heard it at all. If this record is awakening the joy in anyone for country music that I possess, I welcome it, for that love and passion is unlike anything I have experienced. And it’s that same love and passion which lives inside Trixie Mattel and comes pouring out on this record, and which ultimately defies everything else.

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Random Reflections

Reflecting on: Vince Gill- Pocket Full of Gold

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Yeah, I know, as far as the New Year’s resolution/goal to do more reflections, we’ve been failing spectacularly. All I can say is I hope to rectify that because both Brianna and I really enjoy writing these. Anyway, this is a reflection I’ve been promising since even before that, back when we had stopped doing this during the last quarter of the year in order to focus on backlogs and those endless lists. So, though it is long overdue, I dedicate this reflection to our visual consultant Zack and his sobering ignorance of Vince Gill.

Release Date: 1991

Style: 90s neotraditional country

People Who Might Like This Album: fans of 90s country, maybe fans of Dwight Yoakam for the more upbeat stuff, , fans of George Strait

Standout Tracks: “Pocket Full of Gold,” “Liza Jane,” “Take Your Memory With You,” “What’s a Man to Do,” “I Quit,” “The strings That Tie You Down”

Reflections: I am currently in pursuit of every George Strait original album ever made. Once that goal is completed, I plan to move on to doing the same with Vince Gill. I grew up with 90s and early 00s country, but Vince was an artist I came to appreciate much later, during my time in college. I had the excellent fortune to meet his guitar teacher, a brilliant musician who taught at our college and also directed a traveling band, for which I became a singer. We took a trip to Nashville to record there, and it was there that I also had the great fortune to meet Vince. Joe, the director, took us to a little bar known as Station Inn to hear The Time Jumpers. It was also a common occurrence for Vince Gill to just show up there and sing with them, and he did so that night. Hearing that voice live made me go from almost unfamiliar with his music to an instant fan. I bought a greatest hits collection called Souvenirs the next day at the Country Music Hall of Fame, and I have never looked back.

We all think of a deep, bass voice when we think of country singers. But I assert the bold statement that Vince Gill’s unmistakable tenor is the best living voice we have in country music today. He’s a stunning technical singer, but he also knows how to use that range to full effect and how to hold out notes to create emotion. One of my favorite moments in music ever is when he sings “how many lies” on the chorus of “Pocket Full of Gold,” bending “lies” into about nine beats and five notes. And if you don’t know what I’m talking about, all of you music nerds who read this site, go listen to this, and if you’re not impressed, question your music nerd status in a serious way.

It’s his voice that allows him to sing in so many different styles–well that and his ridiculous guitar playing. There’s an album later in his discography which I may cover at some point where he released four discs at once, each with its own sonic theme. There was traditional country, adult contemporary, country rock, and bluegrass. This album isn’t quite as varied as all that, but it does have a nice variety of serious stuff like the title track and “Look at Us” mixed in with lively, fun tracks like “I Quit” and “Liza Jane.” Too often in these times we get mainstream records that are too immature and independent records that take themselves too seriously and suck the joy out of life. Vince Gill has always seemed to find a balance, and his fun songs always still have substance.

I could have picked pretty much any of his albums, and selecting one for this reflection was hard. It’s one reason I may cover more of his discography in the future. For now, this is as good a place as any to start with one of the best country vocalists we’ve ever seen.

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Reviews

Single Review: Miranda Lambert’s “Keeper of the Flame”

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Rating: 8/10

Maybe “Vice” was too edgy and serious, and country radio was too afraid to play a song about a woman drinking and having casual sex. I have no idea what the problem with “We Should be Friends” was, but since it wasn’t one of the standouts from The Weight of These Wings for me personally and also didn’t seem to resonate extremely well with the public, I’ll give country radio a pass here. And “Tin Man” was obviously just too good and too country for the format in order to ever have any hope of success, despite its ridiculous sales and award show spikes, because promoting a single with proven sales behind it just makes too much sense.

But if “Keeper of the Flame” can’t manage to do something meaningful at radio, I will be forced to conclude that it’s because Miranda has breasts–because this is a perfect 2018 country radio single, complete with anthemic lyrics, a catchy melody, and your standard rising choruses so common to the format. And oh yeah, it actually has substance and pays tribute to the singers who came before Lambert and the ones who will come after, as she keeps the flame of country music alive. But although it honors tradition lyrically, its production is modern country rock, featuring synthesizers, and in short, not something which should be polarizing to radio. In fact, it’s a song that bridges the gap between the mainstream and independent, the modern and traditional very well, like the way we had all hoped Scotty McCreery might do with his latest album.

This single is an example of how to move country music forward in a respectful manner, and in a practical sense, it’s also the best one Miranda Lambert has chosen from this album. Let’s hope it can make an impact and that her radio career isn’t completely dead at this point because success for this song means success for a song of substance, for a woman artist who deserves to be recognized, and most importantly, for a song that actually sounds like it belongs in the country genre.

Written by: Miranda Lambert, Natalie Hemby, Liz Rose

Reviews

Album Review: Vivian Leva–Time is Everything

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Rating: 7/10

While many mainstream outlets would probably classify it as such, Country Exclusive is not a traditionalist Web site, and I am not a traditionalist writer. I do try to find some country in most of the music I review, and I do respect the roots of the music, but I believe it should move forward rather than backward, and yes, that it should evolve, just not in the ways of radio. You’ll find some reviews very shortly on this blog embracing some rather progressive stuff that those with more traditional views than myself are going to hate. I seek good music from pop country, from Red Dirt, from Americana, from whatever this new thing called fusion country is supposed to be, and from everything in between.

All that said, there is nothing that can quite replace the sound of three-chord country, from the fiddle and steel to the simple musical progressions to the stories and melodies that speak to real lives and real people. And no matter how many subgenres country splits into, it’s still good to see people carrying a torch for traditional country because even though it’s great to hear new ideas and forward-thinking music, it would be a shame if this art form died out completely or became relegated to the past like a forgotten, outdated piece of musical history that had long since run its course.

It’s comforting when you press play on this record and hear those traditional three-chord arrangements, shuffling beats, and simple melodies. Simply put, it’s just a lovely album to listen to instrumentally. My favorite thing I’ve heard about this album compared it to sunrise and springtime, and after some listens, I’d have to say that’s accurate, as it’s really bright and calming and just a good record for this time of year. Although minimalist in its approach, there’s enough variety in tempo and instrumentation to make it quite an engaging listen. It’s true the production is sparse, but within these parameters, there’s quite a bit of variety, from the bluegrass feel of “Cold Mountains” to the shuffle of “Why Don’t You Introduce me as Your Darlin'” to the atmospheric cover of “Last of my Kind.” Incidentally, this is one rare instance where a cover is better than the original.

And much of this feels authentic to Vivian Leva, not just an interpretation of style like some traditional country albums tend to be, but rather an actual outpouring of her emotion expressed through this art form. Her songs speak to love and heartbreak like many of the greatest country songs through the ages, from the wistful, resigned “Bottom of the Glass” to the hopeful yet jaded “No forever.” She looks back on the memories in “Cold Mountains” and wonders aloud what happened to her love and marriage in “Sturdy as the Land.” She’s done wishing for things she knows she can never have in the acoustic “Wishes and Dreams” and admits that she waited too long in the piano-driven closer, “Here I Am.” It all seems to come together in the title track, as she’s trying to move on. This record seems to represent her time dealing with the pain of this lost love and moving on from it for the better.

My biggest criticism of this album is Vivian Leva herself, and if vocals mean a lot to you, this might not be the record for you. Still, it’s a difficult thing to criticize because for some of you, it won’t matter all that much. Any of you who read this regularly will know vocals mean quite a lot to me, and you should know that this album has to be good because basically, I like this despite myself and my personal problems with her voice. And when you hear one of the sample songs, you’ll think I mean her tone, which is frail and soft, but that’s not the biggest issue, as tone is just something that exists; a singer cannot control that. It’s true that you might have to get used to her tone, but the bigger issue is her inflections. She does this sort of half yodel thing that is very similar to Natalie Maines’ style of singing, but unlike Maines, Vivian Leva doesn’t use it to its full effect, sometimes adding this to nearly every syllable in a song. This is most pronounced on “Bottom of the Glass,” which is unfortunately the opener. It’s least noticeable on “Why Don’t You Introduce me as Your Darlin’.” This effect combined with the fragility of her tone also means Leva can sometimes be hard to understand. For me, it’s quite distracting at times and really brings the album down, but for those who don’t care as much about vocals, it won’t be as much of a problem. There is also some weaker writing on the last couple of songs, and the album definitely ends at a lower point than where it begins.

But overall, this record just won me over. The melodies and lyrics are well-written, and there’s enough variety in instrumentation to keep this from suffering the fate of all the boring 2017 independent releases. It’s a charming little album and definitely the most country one I’ve heard in quite awhile. Sometimes it’s just nice to have fiddle and steel in your life, but just because somethings country doesn’t mean it’s good. This, fortunately, is both.

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Reviews

Album Review: Courtney Marie Andrews–May Your Kindness Remain

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Rating: 7.5/10

One of my greatest joys in 2016, an intermittent and strange year for Country Exclusive, was the discovery of Courtney Marie Andrews, She’s an artist who could rightly be called more folk rock than country but whose style and songwriting transcend genre classification in the same way of Linda Ronstadt, an artist Andrews channels quite a bit vocally. IN fact, it’s the voice that captures you first with her, some kind of wonderful cross between Ronstadt, Joni Mitchell, and something all her own that draws you in and leaves you hanging on every word until you’re also captured by her stories and melodies. As mentioned, 2016 was an odd year for the site and for me personally, and there was a lot of music I heard but just never had the time or energy to review; if I found the strength within myself to write about something that year, many times it was special. Andrews’ album Honest Life blew me away from cover to cover and received one of the few perfect ratings I’ve ever handed down here. So needless to say, I was incredibly excited to hear that she’d be bringing us new music, and while this doesn’t capture me on the level of her previous record, it’s still a pretty solid album from Andrews.

It does take awhile to really hit its stride, though. It’s true that Courtney’s voice is as powerful as ever, and the way she bends syllables to add extra emotion is just fantastic and something that seems to be completely inherent and unique to her as a vocalist. She’s got a knack for writing within the sweet spot of her vocals as well, bringing out high notes that display her raw emotion and intensity. All of that is there from the outset, but the lyrics fall a little short. The title track is the only standout of the first three, with its gentle advice to let our kindness outlive our physical beauty and remain even when our money is gone. This one has some really unnecessary electric guitar in the middle that frankly distracts from it and just seems overdone, but this is still nice lyrically and melodically. You kind of forgive the production choice and hope for a better one on the next song. But “Lift the Lonely from My Heart” and “Two Cold Nights in Buffalo,” though both better in terms of production, just don’t stand out or make much of an impression lyrically. They’re not bad, but they’re not living up to the standard Courtney Marie Andrews has set for herself, and three songs into this record, I am a little disappointed.

That all changes in the heart of the album. Here, Courtney reminds me exactly what she’s capable of with several incredible songs. The piano and heart-wrenching delivery of “Rough Around the Edges” set the backdrop for this tale of a character with whom we can all probably empathize on some days. Andrews’ attention to detail in this song serves to paint a startling picture of a person who’s been hit hard by life and barely hanging on; every line serves a purpose, from the dishes in the sink to the curtains being drawn and the TV constantly being on but not really being watched, to the fact that she doesn’t even feel like answering her phone for anyone today. Courtney’s knack for portraying the downtrodden continues with “Border,” as she sings of a man coming to America for freedom and a new life and reminds us, “you cannot measure a man until you’ve been down the deepest well.” I love the experiments with production they took here, as this one veers toward a more atmospheric rock style that really works for this track. And then “Took You Up” arrives, the definite crown jewel of this album. This again is the story of downtrodden people just trying to get by, but this is a story of love outlasting all and surviving when money is tight and times are hard. Courtney Marie Andrews’ genius vocal ability really adds to this song, as it’s her unique inflections which draw out all the emotion in this simple track. Put this in the hands of another singer, and it’s an average love song, but with Courtney, it’s a gem on this record. “This House” serves as a follow-up to this song, relying on all those details again to paint a portrait of a home filled with laughter and love even if it might not be, to use Courtney’s words, “much of a house.” And for all you strict traditionalists/purists out there, although Courtney Marie’s work does lie more in the folk rock realm, this song is very solidly three-chord country.

The problem with this album, though, is its inconsistency. After these four excellent songs, we have “Kindness of Strangers,” the least memorable thing on the entire project. It still speaks to the lonely and forsaken, saying that some days, it takes the thoughtfulness of strangers just to get by, but in some ways, it’s simply echoing themes that we’ve already heard presented better earlier on the album. “I’ve Hurt Worse” gets us back on track with a sarcastic look at a toxic relationship and how we sometimes love and stay with people we know aren’t right for us because we think we don’t deserve any better. The melody here is absolutely beautiful, and there’s a nice, almost Celtic flavor to the instrumentation. “Long Road Back to You” hearkens back to the themes of distance and coming home to loved ones so often explored on Andrews’ last album, closing the record elegantly.

Overall, this is a solid effort. Its greatest problem is inconsistency because rather than being solid all the way through, it’s a record of highs and lows. When Courtney hits the mark, these songs are incredible. Her gift for portraying and empathizing with the downtrodden is similar to what we saw from Brandi Carlile’s recent album, and her ability as an emotive interpreter is unparalleled. Unfortunately, unlike her last record, this one does have some forgettable moments lyrically. However, even the lesser songs in that respect are elevated by her melodies and especially by her talents as a vocalist, so it’s still a really nice album. Also, I’m probably being a bit unfair to it because I’m judging it at the high standard to which I hold Courtney Marie Andrews, and in that respect, it falls a little short. But this is still a good record with some standout songs, and many will find a lot to enjoy here.

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