Nick Shoulders - All Bad
By Ross Jones
Shoulders' poetic yarn can at times leave these harsh truths tangled, but it's the exasperated sigh he exhales throughout that weighs heavy and loudest of all.
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Nick Shoulders - All Bad
Label: Gar Hole Records
Release Date: September 8, 2023
Producers: Ross Farbe, Timothy Stollenwork
Tracklisting:
1. Hoarse Whisperer
2. Blue Endless Highway
3. All Bad
4. Hook, Line, and Sinker
5. Its the Best?
6. Toast First
7. Arkansaw Troubler
8. Mama Tired
9. Up the Ouachita
10. Long Spring
11. Appreciate'cha
12. Won't Fence Us In
13. Whooped If You Will
14. Empty Yodel No 1
Combative feelings form the beating heart of All Bad, Nick Shoulders' fourth full-length.
He's both exasperated by the state of the world but thankful for the environment which he calls home; fatigued by our dependency on phones and interstates being built across every tuft of green land, he is still grateful he didn't burn the toast, even if he couldn't save a relationship gone cold.
Shoulders' poetic yarn can at times leave these harsh truths tangled, but it's the exasperated sigh he exhales throughout that weighs heavy and loudest of all.
Where the album does feels prolonged in places, its pleasant, encompassing musicianship and Shoulders' knack for an exuberant melody goes some way in justifying a lack of variety. While he's adamant in pointing out the shit in the world, he's determined to offer some element of levity. After all, it's not all bad.
6/10
All Bad is out now via Gar Hole Records. For more on Nick Shoulders, see below:
