Best and the Rest of 2014 – Country Universe

Album Review: Carrie Underwood, Greatest Hits: Decade #1

January 27, 2015 Kevin John Coyne 17

Carrie Underwood Greatest Hits: Decade #1 Hits compilations have become an odd thing in the digital age, as they give both hardcore and casual fans little reason to purchase. The new tracks can be downloaded

Album Review: Jon Pardi, Write You a Song

January 27, 2015 Kevin John Coyne 2

Jon Pardi Write You a Song A surprisingly entertaining debut effort, Jon Pardi’s relentless enthusiasm infuses even mediocre material with enough energy to make it listenable. Of course, that’s the advantage of a debut album.

Album Review: David Nail, I’m a Fire

January 27, 2015 Kevin John Coyne 7

David Nail I’m a Fire If he’s a fire, it’s one that doesn’t burn nearly enough. Three albums in, Nail continues to pair great potential with middling results. Despite having better pipes than most of

Album Review: Zoe Muth, World of Strangers

January 18, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 0

Zoe Muth World of Strangers Few artists can make “weary” sound as engaging as Zoe Muth. Even though she rarely picks up the tempo past a casually swinging shuffle, Muth captivates with her artfully turned

Album Review: Little Big Town, Pain Killer

January 14, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 4

Little Big Town Pain Killer Rather than focusing on their unrivaled vocal skill, Little Big Town and producer Jay Joyce approach Pain Killer like a game of “Chicken”: Listening to the album, it appears that

Album Review: Garth Brooks, Man Against Machine

January 14, 2015 Kevin John Coyne 2

Garth Brooks Man Against Machine Garth’s first proper studio album in thirteen years is chock full of all of his best and worst traits, but thankfully errs more often on the side of subtlety over

Album Review: Blake Shelton, Bringing Back the Sunshine

January 13, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 2

Blake Shelton Bringing Back the Sunshine He’s been coasting on his celebrity status and his brand of aw-shucks humor for years, so it’s encouraging that Blake Shelton’s Bringing Back the Sunshine seems less phoned-in than

Album Review: Angaleena Presley, American Middle Class

January 13, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 0

Angaleena Presley American Middle Class Presley’s upbringing in the hollows of Eastern Kentucky provides her with an endless well of believable first-person details that she uses to create the quirky, cockeyed fictions on American Middle

Album Review: Brad Paisley, Moonshine in the Trunk

January 12, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 0

Brad Paisley Moonshine in the Trunk Paisley’s last four albums have established a pattern of something slightly progressive or challenging (American Saturday Night, Wheelhouse) followed by a course-correction back toward baseline (This is Country Music,

The Best Albums of 2014

December 31, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 9

2014 was a banner year for country music albums. In addition to the predictably solid entries from the Americana, folk, and bluegrass scenes, some excellent albums also surfaced from the unlikeliest of sources: mainstream, radio-friendly

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