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Reviews

Album Review: Seneca by Charles Wesley Godwin

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Rating: 8.5/10

The roots of our beloved country music can be traced back to Appalachia, to the mountains of West Virginia and Kentucky where the struggles of real people laid the foundation for an entire genre. Even today, some of the most compelling country music being made is coming out of this region, from Tyler Childers to Justin Payne to Dori freeman. Charles Wesley Godwin is the next artist to bring the Appalachian sound and spirit to life, taking a more singer/songwriter approach similar to that of Freeman. If Tyler Childers is the Turnpike of Appalachian country, writing great lyrics that are still fantastic live, Godwin is more like the Jason Eady of the region, with thoughtful details and stories that capture the soul more and more with each listen.

Appalachia is home to a people with deep ties to the land and a resigned familiarity with the hard times. Godwin speaks of both in the opening song of his debut album, (“Windmill) Keep on Turning,” as he paints a picture of a difficult existence but declares that a mountain sunrise can make all those problems insignificant. It’s the beginning of an epic that unfolds throughout Seneca, a journey through Appalachia in both sound and story, told through these characters and through the lens of Godwin’s own perspective. It’s not a concept album, but it’s a complete and accurate portrait of West Virginia, from the loneliness of the woods to the struggle of the people to the hope that runs through it all and the beauty of the land that makes everything worth it.

The production of Seneca is nothing short of impressive. It’s often seen as secondary on projects like this, where the songwriting is the crown jewel. But Godwin uses the production to his advantage, as a tool to heighten these stories, the way it was meant to be utilized. There’s delicate piano to add color on “Coal Country,” and crying fiddles to accentuate the loneliness of “Seneca creek.” There is variety in instrumentation, but Godwin has definitely found his sound, a rare accomplishment on a debut album. Most of these songs are in darker keys, and everything feels lonesome, as if the whole album were recorded in a coal mine or on some deserted mountainside. But it’s not desolate and atmospheric like say, Red Shahan’s latest album, which tried to set the tumbleweeds and endless West Texas sky to music; rather, this record still has a warmth and intimacy to it. It’s lonesome, yes, but not lonely. It’s peaceful, capturing the mood of the land it portrays beautifully.

And then there are the stories themselves, from the five-minute tale of a couple who made their life together by Seneca Creek in the song of the same name to the story of the miner who tries to comfort his widow in “Sorry for the wait.” Godwin paints a bittersweet picture of the land in “Coal Country,” a land he calls broken and describes as lying “in its grave of Appalachian stone.” His love for West Virginia pours out in every line, as well as his grief for the hardships its people have endured.

But there’s beauty and hope in this place too. “Hardwood Floors” provides a nice bit of levity, with plenty of fiddle and steel to accompany a nice ode to dancing and living in the moment and just sharing a night with the one you love. “Strawberry Queen” is one of the best songs on a stellar record; it’s a simple, charming little love song, but it illustrates the beauty in the simple things, and how any struggle is easier to make it through with the right one by your side. “Shrinks and Pills,” though it’s one of the few places on the record where the production isn’t fantastic, provides a rueful, humorous way of looking at everything, saying that Godwin sings because “these songs save a fortune on shrinks and pills.” These lighter moments are exactly what a dark, intense album like this needs to keep from being depressing and make the deeper stuff stand out all the more.

As mentioned, “Shrinks and Pills” is one of a couple instances where the production doesn’t enhance the material, or perhaps it would be fairer to say it’s one moment where Charles Wesley Godwin’s enunciation issues affect the song, as the production here drowns him out a little. His enunciation will probably get better with time, but it’s a consistent problem throughout the album. This is a record you must listen to quite closely to hear everything, both because of the rich details and Godwin’s enunciation. but by the same token, Seneca is the kind of record that is certainly worth this level of attention; it’s an album where you’ll want to listen time and time again to catch every detail, or study a vinyl for every last lyric so that you don’t miss a word of this magical story.

Ladies and gentlemen, Charles Wesley Godwin has arrived, and this is one of the best debut albums I’ve ever had the privilege of reviewing. It’s well-written and excellently produced, a perfect picture of the land and culture from which it originated. The year is young, but this is easily the best album so far in 2019, and hopefully, it will be the first of many for Charles Wesley Godwin.

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Reviews

Album Review: Dori Freeman–Letters Never Read

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Rating: 8.5/10

Dori Freeman was one of the coolest discoveries of 2016 for me, coming from out of nowhere and making an absolutely killer debut album. Bringing an Appalachian sound to her brand of country, she displayed a unique talent for taking the traditional and timeless and keeping it forward-thinking and fresh. And not just traditional country either, but vintage pop, bluegrass, and folk as well, proving that the best artists aren’t trapped by genre lines but simply write and perform material that suits them and their individual talents.

Read: Album Review: Dori Freeman Impresses With Her Self-Titled Debut

It seems one of Dori’s talents is a knack for simplicity, and another is instinctively knowing what works for her. IN fact, this record literally feels like a continuation of that first project, and that’s not a bad thing at all. It doesn’t feel like leftovers from the first record or seem as if it’s lacking something new to expand Dori’s sound; rather, it’s like a comforting reminder that Dori Freeman is going to be an artist you can count on for quality music. She’s still mixing up the styles, still singing a lot about love, and even has another a cappella tune on this album in the cover of “Ern & Zorry’s Sneakin’ Bitin’ Dog,” an old Appalachian song written by her grandfather. So yeah, it’s literally not breaking any new ground, but when something was flawless the first time, why deviate from it?

As mentioned, love is certainly a prevailing theme running through this record. Sometimes, it comes from a place of sheer contentment. “If I Could Make You My own” is sweet and simple in its delivery, and sung by anyone else, the poetic lyrics might come across as sappy and overdone, but Freeman exudes a sincerity that just makes it work to perfection. The same goes for “Turtle Dove.” This one leans more toward that folk/vintage pop style than the former, more traditional country song, and again, it’s delivered with such sincerity that you can’t help but believe the sentiments Dori is expressing.

But more often than not, we’re dealing with the darker sides of love and relationships. “Lovers on the Run” confronts men who make excuses for walking away because they can’t commit, asserting that one day, they will be lonely. This one feels a bit like “Go on Lovin'” from her debut album, but this is told in a more general sense rather than addressed to a specific person. “Just Say it Now” finds Dori confronting the impending end of a relationship and saying that she’s about to be back where she was before it began, “wondering what men are ever looking for.”

And then we have the stunning pair of songs, “That’s all Right” and “Cold Waves.” The former sees Freeman in an abusive relationship with an alcoholic; “you’re passing out, and I’m turning blue.” That natural thing in her voice which sells the sap on “Turtledove” also captures the desperation and heartbreak perfectly here. But despite that, she sings from a place of defiance as she tells the man, “You’ll be the only one whose cross you cannot bear” and looks ahead to when she won’t be with him anymore. She does eventually move on, as conveyed on the album’s crown jewel, “Cold Waves.” This is where the album all comes together, as she’s found a new love, presumably the one from “Turtle Dove,” but the previous abuse still haunts her every day. This is a fantastic song, describing the ongoing pain that she must deal with for the rest of her life as “cold waves” and “blue haze” that surrounds her and makes it hard to push through on some days. Though she is now happy, she will always carry this around with her like a weight, and she prays that her daughter will never know this type of heartache. This has to be one of the best songs written on this subject because it neither paints the abuse as something that permanently debilitated her nor as something from which she can ever completely move on. It’s probably the most realistic song about this that I have ever heard, and as I say, it serves to bring the different parts of the record together as well.

This album is indeed simple, and at only twenty-eight minutes of music, it can seem a little short, especially when four of these ten offerings are covers. But it’s also hard to second guess either the brilliant bluegrass arrangement of “Over There” or the aforementioned “Ern & Zorry’s Sneakin’ Bitin’ dog.” These two songs placed in the heart of the record really add that wonderful Appalachian flavor unique to Dori Freeman and so often overlooked in modern country, both mainstream and independent. And let me just add, how many vocalists in the independent scenes can sing a cappella like this? appreciate the vocal quality of Dori freeman, her smooth, undoubtedly country tone, her ability to enunciate clearly, and understand what it takes to pull off stuff like this song because many of her peers simply couldn’t. “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight” is definitely the weakest of the covers; it’s a solid song and a good performance from Dori, but it seems slightly out of place on the record. I wouldn’t call it filler by any stretch, but it just doesn’t really go with the rest of the material here.

In short, this is another great album from Dori Freeman, and she continues to make her mark as a rising artist in the independent country/Americana realms. Her commitment to the old styles and especially to the Appalachian sound is refreshing and indeed sets her apart from many of her counterparts. This is a sparse, simple record, yes, but with Dori Freeman, this is all it takes; in fact, less is often more. It’s not strictly country, but because of her diversity with several different styles, there’s really something here for everyone. Definitely recommend checking this one out.

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Reviews

Album Review: Dori Freeman Impresses With her Self-Titled Debut

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Rating: 10/10

Sometimes, when I listen to albums for review, it takes a few listens to form an overall opinion. Often, this serves the music well and allows me to appreciate things I had not first noticed, usually leading to better reviews. Often, on the first listen, certain songs stand out immediately; some above the rest, some that could have been left off the entire project. And then there are rare occasions when an album hits me on that first listen–these are the albums which deserve the highest praise because they take me out of a place of critical review altogether and leave me just enjoying the music. This is connection, and relatability, and it is at the heart of all music. I speak about production and instrumentation and songwriting, but at the end of the day, music is meant to make the listener feel something. With that in mind, meet Dori Freeman, a 24-year-old singer-songwriter from the Appalachian Mountains of Galax, Virginia, who brings us an album influenced by classic country, bluegrass, folk, and the Appalachian sound. You will certainly feel something when you hear this album–and it excels in production, instrumentation, and songwriting as well.

We are introduced to Dori Freeman with only her guitar and her voice, unheard of on any album in 2016, much less a debut. “You Say,” the opener, immediately hooks me with its first lines–“You say you can’t save me, but I never asked you to. Can’t you just believe that I only wanted to lie there with you.” In Dori’s voice, I hear the Appalachian sound that has long been lost in country music. It’s raw and honest, and makes you want to keep listening, accomplishing everything an opener should. It also tells me Dori Freeman is willing to take risks. “Where I Stood” is still just Dori and her guitar, although hear there are harmonies. This is a song about two people in a relationship who are reflecting that their love has died and that if they could do it again, they would not have chosen each other–“What happened to your dreams, what happened to mine? You’re wasting my love, and I’m wasting your time. I know you’d go back if you could, and you’d leave me standing right there where I stood.” “Go on Lovin'” is a classic country heartbreak song, with plenty of fiddle and steel, and more simple, honest lyrics–“How am I supposed to go on lovin’ when you left me feelin’ like I don’t know how.” Dori Freeman has a cry in her voice common to the Appalachian sound that really fits this song.

“Tell Me” is a pop-influenced track, but it’s not the pop country of 2016; it’s the vintage pop sound of Lynn Anderson and reminds me of something Whitney Rose might record today. Here, Dori is trying to convince a man to admit he wants her; it seems to be apparent to her that he does. The production actually really fits this, and if anything adds to the album as a whole–it proves that Dori Freeman knows how to interpret a lyric. Vintage pop worked better here than traditional country, and this speaks to Dori’s understanding of music in general. “Fine Fine Fine” is an upbeat song about catching a man cheating, but it’s “fine, fine, fine, if you wanna walk that line, but you’ll be leavin’ me behind if you do.” This one is also reminiscent of a Whitney Rose track, although with more country than “Tell Me.” There is some enjoyable piano on this track; we need more country piano playing. “Any Wonder” again carries the Whitney Rose-like influence of vintage pop and traditional country, although this is more country than the last. This is about two people falling for each other, and all the emotions that come with it–happiness and fear and anticipation. It’s a more complex song than the rest, capturing the various emotions perfectly.

And then there is “Ain’t Nobody.” I said that Dori is not afraid to take risks–and here is a song with only her voice and her snapping fingers. This is an Appalachian-influenced song if ever there was one; it’s an ode to the workers in the Appalachian coal mines, the farmers, the mothers, and the prisoners–“I work all night, I work all day, well, I work all night, I work all day. I said, I work all night, I work all day, cause ain’t nobody gonna pay my way.” Dori Freeman’s voice is raw, honest, and incredible, and it is absolutely remarkable that this is a cappella. If you choose one Dori Freeman song to listen to, pick this one, because it will make you a believer, and you will have to listen to all the others. It is one I will post here. “Lullaby” is another classic heartbreak song, this one about a woman who is up at night thinking of a man who is with someone else. This song brings back the country piano playing, and it fits the song perfectly. In fact, I cannot readily think of an album I have reviewed here where every song was so well-produced, with the possible exception of Kasey Chambers’s Bittersweet. “Song for Paul” returns to simply Dori, her guitar, and harmonies. This is another heartbreak song, and once again the lyrics are wonderful; Dori is telling Paul that whenever he should get lonely, “somewhere I’ll be thinking of you.” The album closes with “Still a Child,” a song about a man who won’t commit or grow up; “You say you need me, but I need a man, and you are still a child.” It’s an excellent way to close an incredible album.

If you haven’t figured it out, you need to hear this album if you consider yourself a fan of country, Americana, bluegrass, folk, or music. This is one of the best albums I have reviewed, and it makes me glad to help introduce the world to an unknown artist like this who deserves to be heard. This is an album of simple, tasteful production; every song is produced as it should be. The songwriting is excellent, and Dori Freeman has a unique and incredible voice carrying the nearly forgotten Appalachian sound. To add to all this, Dori took risks, like singing a cappella and with only a guitar–and this is her debut; she stands only to improve. But more than any of that, it’s a raw, honest album, that does everything music is supposed to; it evokes emotion in the listener, and it’s simply relatable and enjoyable music. Dori Freeman is a name you should know–and this is an album you should hear, and hear again.

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