Midland - Barely Blue

“Sometimes, you just get lucky and you don’t ask why / It’s like falling up to heaven and coming up a seven / Every time you roll the dice / You know you just get lucky,” croons Mark Wystrach on spunky opener ‘Lucky Sometimes.’ It sets the hopeful yet melancholic tinged tone for Midland’s Barely Blue, while somehow cheekily nodding to the magical artistic achievement found across their fourth album. Though, luck surely has nothing to do with it.

Produced by Dave Cobb at Georgia Mae Studios in Savannah, Barely Blue is Midland’s most assuredly succinct album to date. Across the eight-track set, Wystrach, alongside bandmates Cameron Duddy and Jess Carson, expertly refine their sonic explorations from 2022’s explorative The Last Resort: Greetings From with resounding success. Since their formation in 2014, the trio have diligently approached their neotraditional country and country rock works with a strong penchant towards creating a sound distinctively their own. With Barely Blue, they have triumphantly achieved this goal, creating a modern electric sound from start to finish.

The mature title track is an ode to thriving while weathering the storm after heartbreak, their crisply intertwined harmonies adding a resilient edge to the classic-leaning standard. With a gorgeous guitar opening, ‘Better Than A Memory’ is a stirring promise of newfound love, the trio accessing a noticeably subdued side of their vocal registers to superbly tender results. Mid-tempo ‘Vegas’ offers their signature, lyrical play-on-words across lush harmonies that create a refreshed, nostalgic vibe that pings like a vintage slot machine. This stellar approach continues on ‘Baby It’s You,’ which glides and slides with hints of a Bee Gees inspired groove that still manages to feel resonantly modern.

Barely Blue marks a substantial turning point in Midland’s artistic trajectory. For nearly a decade, they have produced hit after hit, demonstrating their diverse musical abilities all while cultivating a palette of sounds reminiscent of many of country music’s greats. Yet, it is with Barely Blue where they fully embody the discoveries made during their journey and create a collection that honors their stellar transformation.

8/10

Midland’s 2024 album, Barely Blue, is available now via Big Machine Label Group.

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