February 2014 – Country Universe

Win a Signed Copy of Dierks Bentley’s Riser

February 28, 2014 Ben Foster 26

UPDATE: Contest closed. Congratulations to winner Jonathan Pappalardo!

Country Universe favorite Dierks Bentley has just released his seventh Capitol studio set Riser, and we’re pleased to offer an autographed copy to give away to one of our readers.

Single Review: Miranda Lambert, “Automatic”

February 27, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 17

Have you heard about the Miranda Lambert third single rule?

It goes like this. The first single will be alright, the second will be better, but you won’t get a great one until the third time around.

Single Review: The Band Perry, “Chainsaw”

February 27, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 3

A cool sounding record that is ultimately undermined by a juvenile delivery.

Single Review: Mandy Barnett featuring Alison Krauss, “Blue Blue Day”

February 21, 2014 Ben Foster 9

The awesomeness of this release has a definite air of inevitability. If Don Gibson wrote it, and Mandy Barnett and Alison Krauss sing it, it’s pretty hard to imagine it not being great.

Single Review: Thomas Rhett, “Get Me Some of That”

February 11, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 10

Better than it has any right to be.

The mind-numbingly dull lyric has nothing new to offer, with details that sound more like a pitch for an Axe commercial than an actual documentation of a realistic human experience. The band also phones it in, with nothing more distinctive than a Karaoke backing track.

Single Review: Tyler Farr, “Whiskey in My Water”

February 10, 2014 Sam Gazdziak 29

Tyler Farr’s debut single, “Redneck Crazy,” became a hit in spite of the fact that it was about a good ol’ country boy stalking his ex-girlfriend, along with public drunkenness, loitering and probably half a dozen other punishable offenses. As good ol’ country boys do when they get dumped.