Showing posts with label Maren Morris. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maren Morris. Show all posts

Jun 5, 2017

Really Dumb Country Reviews: Wheeler, FGL, Isbell

Florida Georgia Line - Dig Your Roots



Wheeler Walker, Jr. - Ol' Wheeler

Good thing; it's not for kids, dumbass. *the *those? *to?



Sam Hunt - Body Like a Back Road

A song about sex helped you through rough times? You need therapy.



Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - The Nashville Sound
If this record offends your sensibilities, you should probably move on over to pop country for however long Donald Trump is in office. It's going to be a rough time for you listening to Americana.





Thomas Rhett/Maren Morris - Craving You





May 19, 2017

Single Review: Carly Pearce "Every Little Thing"

by Jonny Brick

Off on the latest round of Bobby Bones's Funny and Alone tour, Carly is the latest new hot 'girl singer' or, as they are now called, Anyone But Carrie.

It is quite horrific that Carly has entered the charts with this song and, excluding boy-girl duets (Craving You, Speak to a Girl, The Fighter) sits alongside only THREE (tres) other women singing on their own: Kelsea, Maren, RaeLynn. Carly made this point on social media. It'll change, but maybe not in Willie Nelson's lifetime.

At least Carly, on Big Machine, has bucks and Borchetta (that’s a songtitle…) behind her. The big marketing push must centre on her experience singing at Dollywood, but there’s less Dolly in here and more Crystal Gayle, a pretty and pure voice that will certainly leap out on the radio among our friends [insert least favourite act].

There are so few great female voices from the post-Shania era: Taylor obviously but she’s a writer first and a singer second, Karen and Kimberly, Hilary, Maren, Miranda (more attitude than beauty, and that IS just the voice), Angaleena and Ashley, the other Pistol Annies...Then Carrie obviously, Kelsea who is fun [editor's note: NOPE], RaeLynn who has The Voice, and now Carly. Being uncharitable, I could say Cam is on the line and wants her burning house back.

I love, as I am sure you will, the twang of the dobro (I think it’s a dobro). The song opens with a sense impression: ‘the scent that you left on the pillow, the sound of your heartbeat’. In fact, Carly remembers everything, ‘the shine, the stain’, but she has now turned her back on the guy. Then, as often happens, the last verse flips the narrative: ‘I’d die to not remember every little thing’. What a super song.

Every Little Thing fits the template of Maren Country (can I coin that?): confident, tender, beautiful (the song AND the act), traditional with lots of contemporary edge. Sounds like a hit.

7.5 out of 10

Oct 11, 2016

The Current Poop of Country Music (October '16)

A ratings system based on poop emojis seems right in our wheelhouse, so here you go. This is the current Mediabase Top 20 country songs. Poop is bad. Not-Poop is good. The potential worst rating is 5 poop emojis. The potential best is 5 not-poop emojis. Here's Trailer's opinion of each song. Enjoy!     (...?)



The current Poop Rating of the Mediabase Top 20 is (0) overall which is a +5 improvement from our last chart a couple months ago. The best song is Miranda Lambert's "Vice." The worst, by a long shot, is Luke Bryan's "Move." Please read Country Perspective's Current Pulse for a different perspective, more class, and better insight.

Chart from Country Aircheck / Mediabase.

Mar 29, 2016

Really Dumb Country Music Reviews: March '16

Real country song/album reviews from a popular music downloading service.



Jon Pardi - Head Over Boots

 Maren Morris EP


Southern Family


Sturgill Simpson - In Bloom

 Sam Hunt - Montevallo
 



Kane Brown EP



Feb 17, 2016

3 Up 3 Down: February 2016


3 Up

Chris Stapleton - Nobody to Blame
It's a surprise to see this still climbing the charts, but an absolute blast and a shock to hear it come on country radio. It's like a guy showed up in boots to a black tie affair, but Garth it ain't. While it's far from the best song on Chris' highly awarded Traveller, it's a hell of a song, and a glimmer… no, it's a high beam on a moonless night.
A

Maren Morris - My Church
Some will focus on the name-dropping and hand clapping and not give this a fair shake, but it's a cool tune. Bluesy, stomping, and honest. Can't help but love the gospel flair in the chorus, tying the whole theme in perfectly. More like this, country radio! Less like "Dibs."
B+

Tim McGraw - Humble and Kind
Simple and affecting. Some may hear this as sappy and calculated, but I hear sincerity. And Tim doesn't have to put out stuff like this. He could still be chasing trends a'la' his misguided "Truck Yeah" era, but the fact that he's chosen to follow his own path and bring mature music to a sophomoric format is a credit to his standing as one of the few remaining artists with ties to the soul of real country music.
A

Bonus: Big & Rich ft. Tim McGraw - Lovin' Lately
A surprisingly catchy effort from a pair who's flown under the radar in recent years with middling songs nobody remembers 5 minutes after they end. "Lovin' Lately" is anthemic and ear-worm worthy, in a good way. The melody is the thing.
B

3 Down

Old Dominion - Snapback
Old Dominion is single-handedly keeping bro-country from truly breathing its last breath. This song has been the source of umpteen memes on Farce the Music and probably will spawn more. It's a straight up piece of crap. Slangy, cocky, sexually harassing. If Robin Thicke and Pitbull showed up on the remix, I would not be shocked in the least.
F

Cole Swindell - You Should Be Here
I applaud Cole for attempting to bring a bit more depth to country radio, but he should have tried harder. Or less hard, as the case may be. Based on real life or not, "You Should Be Here" sounds contrived and focus-group tested. "Bros Cry Too" would be a more apt title, as it drops all the tropes like drinking and hanging out …into a song about death. Maybe my cold black soul has just become too jaded, but an ASPCA commercial has an infinitely higher chance of dragging a tear out of my eye than this.
D+

Michael Ray - Real Men Love Jesus
Michael has a pretty nice voice, but I'm tired of listing songs and I'm tired of people telling what real men should do. I love Jesus, but a lot of people whose manhood you wouldn't dare question just think Jesus was a pretty cool guy There are ways to say this same thing without painting so broadly. Also, the song has little or nothing to do with the title itself. Jesus is just kinda shoe-horned in there with beer and dirt and barbed wire tattoos or whatever.  I'm all for Jesus songs being on country radio, but proclaim Him… live His Word loudly… just don't use Him as a selling point for a middling pop-country song.

C-

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