Review: Whiskey Falls, “Last Train Running”

Whiskey Falls, “Last Train Running”

Yes. Yes yes yes yes yes. This is what I’m talking about. I get a lot of backlash here when I beat up on a single by a new artist, but the debut Whiskey Falls single is proof positive that you can get it all right the first time out: distinctive sound, fantastic song and a pitch-perfect performance. There are already so many acts out there, new and old, that you have to establish your “reason to be” right off the bat.

Whiskey Falls does that, and then some, on their debut single “Last Train Running.” It’s the story of a man contemplating his mortality long before he’ll ever need to confront it, but he’s asking all of the right questions.  Has the good outweighed the bad in my life?  Will I be forgiven not only by God, but by my enemies and friends?  Will I be remembered, or just another name carved in stone?

This is no weepy piano ballad or dramatic, string-drenched anthem.   It’s simply produced, with your standard faux southern-rock backdrop, but it works because it is so understated.  Patty Loveless once said that her job as a singer was to not get in the way of the lyric.  Whiskey Falls has a fantastic lyric to work with, and they allow it to shine. Their harmonies are reminiscent of a young Alabama. Every single moment is believable.

Here’s hoping that listeners get a chance to hear this amazing debut. If you miss the days when Vocal Group awards went to substantive acts instead of pandering boy bands, the dark ages just might be coming to an end.

Grade:  A

Listen: Last Train Running