Album Review – Sam Stoane’s “Tales Of The Dark West”

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#512 (Western) and #510 (Traditional Country) on the Country DDS.

Treat yourself to a true expression of country and Western music, with an emphasis on the Western, carried to the innermost caverns of your heart by the evocative tones of Sam Stoane who awakens dormant emotions inside of you as she deftly delivers inspired songs and Western tales fit for premier acclaim.

It’s hard to not get giddy when you stumble upon a performer like this who clearly holds such promise in helping to shepherd something as obscure and undervalued as Western music to new and younger audiences. Sam Stoane does this by making the music feel cool, present, current, and fresh, while at the same time adhering to the rigid confines of the Western art form, and doing so with such love, reverence, passion, and conviction.

Even if you weren’t a fan of country and Western music previously, after a spin through Tales Of The Dark West, you’ll be wearing out your friends and family about its beauty. Like the feminine version of Colter Wall or Tyler Childers, Sam Stoane forges new bridges and bulldozes down prejudices to grab listeners by the scruff and demand their attention. The appeal of this music is immediate, if for no other reason than the incredible voice that Sam Stoane graces it with.

Stoane’s performances remind you of some of the most inspiring moments from Caitlyn Smith and other top shelf singers in the country arena. It’s not exactly a yodel Stoane brings to her music as much as a superior command of her upper register, undergirded by a fearlessness and confidence to challenge herself and deliver moment after moment on the this record that demands replay.

After a brief instrumental introduction, the album starts off with the song “Coyote Cries,” which immediately shuffles Sam Stoane’s superlative gifts as a vocalist to the forefront, including her sweetened tone that might be uncommon to such rugged music, but through this contrast makes for an incredibly appealing and truly unique listening experience.


A true cowgirl from California, when Sam Stoane sings about a horse that’s 15 hands, she’s doesn’t do so as an anachronistic expression. It comes from experience. Far from just a cute face, a soaring voice, and a compelling backstory, Sam Stoane’s songwriting is far superior to many in her class, perhaps helped in part to her inclination to solicit the help of co-writers to get a song where it needs to be.

And aside from a rendition of the old saw “Back In The Saddle Again,” Sam Stoane wants to push her way forward with original material, however inspired by all the great old songs. There is a murder ballad here called “Pretty Poppies” that will chill you to the bone. The intricacies of the lyricism of “Cologne” leaves nothing to envy from the most exquisite poetry. Among all the other positives to dote on with Tales Of The Dark West, the writing is as good or better as any.

And none of this would mean anything if there wasn’t the right ear brought to this effort by Sam and producer Patrick Lyons, who not surprisingly padded his resume working with Colter Wall. These songs are rendered in Western and traditional country style in a way that won’t give anyone with any taste in country anything to second guess.

One could yap on and on about how great Sam Stoane and Tales Of The Dark West are, and arguably never slip into embellishment or hyperbole. But really, this is an album that doesn’t need any rigorous advocating for. Just listen, and you’ll see. Sam Stoane has arrived, and country & Western music is much better off for it.

8.8/10

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