Album Review – Nick Shoulders “Okay, Crawdad”

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photo: Tamara Grayson Photography

Casting aspersions on all the fools who cemented their 2019 end-of-year lists before Santa came to town, this singing, yodeling, whistling, mustachioed, Louisiana weirdo named Nick Shoulders just screwed up everyone’s 2019 country music flow charts by releasing a serious “best of” contender here in the middle of shivery December.

Rocking an atomic mullet harder than Joe Diffie in 1994, Mr. Shoulders based out of New Orleans first minted himself as a bonafide country music curiosity piece in the summer of 2018 when he released this sort of home spun, spit-and-duct-tape-fashioned 7-song album thing called Lonely Like Me. It was rough around the edges for sure and smelled like a bait bucket, but no matter the presentation, an incredible, other-worldly voice came leaping out from your speakers with a yodel so strong it evoked memories of Slim Whitman and the Singing Cowboys of the old Silver Screen era.

Well now Nick Shoulders is back with a proper LP called Okay, Crawdad, named for the occasional rag tag band that assembles behind him. Seriously upping the game with both the audio quality and songwriting, while still holding on to the underground coolness from his first effort by cutting the songs live to tape with little to no overdubs or electronic wizardry, Nick Shoulders has put together a spellbinding effort that is twangy, rootsy, fun, expressive, diverse, and just a downright pleasure to the ears.

It is not a spurious notion to consider Nick Shoulders one of the most unique and gifted vocal acrobats of roots music from this generation or any other. The splendid highlonesome yodels, the exquisite whistling, the occasional run on the throat trumpet, or just the timbre of his voice when he’s singing straight with no frills is something that immediately sets him off against the weary peloton of average performers. With range, control, and confidence, Shoulders can sing whatever he wants, however he wants, and does.

We love to talk about vocalists who could sing the phone book, but it’s often a serious challenge for gifted singers to either find or craft the right songs to compliment their abilities. Penning all 12 of the Okay, Crawdad tracks except the public domain offering “Ding Dong Daddy,” Nick Shoulders not only rises to the challenge of doing his vocal attributes justice, his songwriting is another top resume point, steeped in understand of the classic modes of country and roots, but still willing to add his little modernized wrinkles and express himself. He’s confident, but never takes himself too seriously. He’s quirky, but never to a point where you lose touch.

Such great variety also awaits the listener delving into the riches of Okay, Crawdad, from serious and sad old-school traditional country, to rag time, boogie-woogie swamp pop, and even a little surf tune, Nick Shoulders shows an alacrity and ease with all of it. The inspirations of Louisiana are all over this record as well, giving it a great regional flavor to go along with the old school style. His accomplices in the studio know their place, and generally stay out of the way of the magic that is Nick Shoulders. But when they do step out like the lead guitar on the opening number “Rather Low,” it’s perfectly on point.

In previous eras, Nick Shoulders would be a marvel of American music with a handsome recording contract and an open invite on the Grand Ole Opry any night he was in town. They would have written bad Westerns for him to star in just to showcase his voice. Instead Nick Shoulders is self-releasing his second record with no publicist and little praise from the press. But that’s why you don’t just wait for your next favorite artist to pass under your nose. You dig for them, and seek them out. Because when you come across a modern marvel like Nick Shoulders, it’s so incredibly rewarding.

8.5/10

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Purchase Okay, Crawdad from Bandcamp

Purchase Okay, Crawdad on Tape from Tape Dad

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