STAFF PICKS•Tyler Childers - Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven?
Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven? is proof that artists like Childers should never be pigeon-holed; they can bring to life anything they set their minds to with flawless execution.
ALBUM REVIEW•Ashley McBryde - Presents: Lindeville
What’s here is creative, well-written, professionally played country, but the nine originals barely break a half hour.
ALBUM REVIEW•Kelsea Ballerini - SUBJECT TO CHANGE
The most important of gifts that Ballerini gives us is a record so affectionately her own.
ALBUM REVIEW•Benjamin Tod - Songs I Swore I'd Never Sing
Raw, revealing and often riveting - but not for the faint of heart.
ALBUM REVIEW•Nikki Lane - Denim & Diamonds
Lane sings about unbearable weariness, bitter loneliness and the often-terrible cost of living life on your own terms. Then, in the same breath, she revels in the unmatchable joy of being free.
ALBUM REVIEW•Maddie & Tae - Through The Madness Vol. 2
While this is the final bookend of the Through the Madness era, Maddie & Tae have fully demonstrated in 2022 that the fate of duos within the genre is in faithful and steady hands.
ALBUM REVIEW•Ondara - Spanish Villager No. 3
Ondara is no prophet, but the Spanish Villager has put together something that should be heard and discussed for a long time to come.
ALBUM REVIEW•Little Big Town - Mr. Sun
Little Big Town confidently explore different themes and ideas through collaborations with various songwriting powerhouses, while still offering their own insightful charm.
ALBUM REVIEW•LeAnn Rimes - god's work
LeAnn Rimes is on top of her game here. Happy to collaborate across multiple genres she also seems to be increasingly willing to showcase her soulful, spiritual, feminist and introspective sides.
ALBUM REVIEW•Jake La Botz - Hair On Fire
What La Botz does well though is he infuses darker concepts into the songs so they feel fresh; inspired and full of the wit and wisdom of an artist waiting for the public to catch up to him.
ALBUM REVIEW•BRELAND - Cross Country
Defying genre divide, a promising newcomer makes a diversified debut
STAFF PICKS•Charley Crockett - The Man From Waco
The Man from Waco is a resolute statement about what’s possible when you stick to your guns.
ALBUM REVIEW•Kane Brown - Different Man
Kane Brown's third album harbours some absolute country gems.
ALBUM REVIEW•Kris Kristofferson – Live at Gilley’s, Pasadena, TX: September 15th, 1981
A performance that captures a historically significant, ragged but right moment from one of country music’s most renowned figures.
ALBUM REVIEW•Jon Pardi - Mr Saturday Night
Mr Saturday Night is the sort of heartbreak album that gives the listener both a chance to cry their eyes out and hit the dance floor for some much-needed boot-scootin’.
STAFF PICKS•Marcus King - Young Blood
Marcus King channels the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Grand Funk Railroad and Black Sabbath on Young Blood, the South Carolinian’s most polished and boisterous album to date.
ALBUM REVIEW•Ingrid Andress - Good Person
Though setting off on a hopeful tone, Andress' second major label release veers far closer to pop than country, generally lacking in any memorable or stand-out moments.
ALBUM REVIEW•Jim Lauderdale - Game Changer
Just maybe, after nearly three dozen tries, this one is the game changer Jim Lauderdale has been working towards. It deserves to be.
ALBUM REVIEW•Gretchen Peters - The Show: Live From The UK
Very much a record of two halves, The Show: Live From the UK is celebrated US singer-songwriter Gretchen Peters’ chance to let her live act do the talking.
ALBUM REVIEW•Watkins Family Hour - Volume II
While a few more upbeat inclusions would have aided the flow, each track is beautifully, and occasionally radically, rearranged for optimum simplicity and effect. Here's Holler's album review of 'Vol.II'.
ALBUM REVIEW•Early James - Strange Time To Be Alive
With his second album, Early James offers insight into an unsettled state of mind. Here's Holler's album review of Strange Time To Be Alive.
ALBUM REVIEW•Vandoliers - The Vandoliers
Listeners averse to slick sounds will likely be put off by the gloss that defines this music, but underneath the candy-coating lives a band of remarkable agility.
ALBUM REVIEW•Mariel Buckley - Everywhere I Used To Be
This is a major step forward for Buckley; her palpable confidence in her talent, along with some hypnotic melodies, is on track to make her a significant alt-country/Americana presence.
STAFF PICKS•Kelsey Waldon - No Regular Dog
With No Regular Dog, Waldon not only eviscerates any established understanding of who she is as an artist, but more importantly as a woman.