Lilly Hiatt and Alana Springsteen are this week’s highlights.
Lilly Hiatt
Forever
A career-best effort, thanks in no small part to a grunge- and punk-inspired rock production that matches the emotional wallop of Hiatt’s songwriting and her dynamic performances. A record of vintage “alt-country,” and yes, that’s an endorsement.
Neon Union
Good Years
There’s just nothing here to distinguish this duo from any other mainstream act who sounds exactly like this: Some MOR rock, some watered-down hip-hop, some country instruments thrown in, and songs that are no more than lifestyle signifiers. Utterly inessential.
Sacha
Where to Start [EP]
A fantastic singer and a clever songwriter, and both of those talents are on display here. The production doesn’t always rise to her level, though, with some overly-slick tracks that sound several years past their sell-by date. Still, the tracks that hit, hit.
Alana Springsteen
Live From the Ryman
A solid (if too brief) case that, by all rights, she should be a superstar. The songs and stage presence are there, and she’s a stronger live vocalist than her studio records would suggest. Should be in any discussion of the best of the zoomer country acts.
Jessica Lynn
All I Own
Uneven. A couple of tracks that play well to her vocal style and have strong, radio-ready hooks. But too much here is mired in clichéd songwriting and MOR production that recalls the frat-rock of the late 90s as much as that era’s country. The base talent’s there, though.
Max McNown
Night Diving
Individual songs are all fine enough, but he’s an aesthetic dilettante: Zach Bryan zoomer-folk, post-Bro contemporary country, stomp-clap-hey… they’re all here. He demonstrates a baseline competence with a range of styles but lacks a distinct artistic identity.
Canaan Smith
Chickahominy
I have zero recollection of his #1 hit from a decade ago, and his close ties to Florida Georgia Line led me to expect far worse than what’s actually here. Which isn’t great on merit, but he has a higher ceiling than Hubbard or Kelly. Some production flourishes elevate pedestrian songs and vocals.
Josh Ward
Same Ol’ Cowboy, Different Rodeo
The 90s throwback field is reaching critical mass. Ward, a very good singer who’s been kicking around for years, has crafted what sounds a whole lot like a vintage Tracy Lawrence record here. There are far worse things to sound like, and there are some legit highs on this.
Larkin Poe
Bloom
Spectacular singing elevates the just all right songwriting and some of the more MOR, Cobb-y production here. The most overtly country tracks (“Mockingbird,” “Fool Outta Me,” “Bloom Again”) are handily the strongest, and wouldn’t sound out of place with Luke Combs or Lainey Wilson.
Leave a Reply