Album Review – The Castellows – “Homecoming”

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#510.8 (Neotraditional Country) with some 530.2 (Country Pop) on the Country DDS.

Don’t allow the cavalcade of pop stars making country records these days to confuse the signal. Country music is coming home, and being embraced with open arms by a wide array of listeners across all generations. If you need any convincing of this, behold the amount of young folks both listening and making country music these days that’s indicative of a sound many years in the past, yet to them, sounds familiar and warm. It’s something real in an increasingly counterfeit world.

Case in point is The Castellows—three sisters from small town Georgia with the given names of Eleanor and Powell Balkcom (two of triplets), and their younger sister Lily. “Castellow” is their great-grandmother’s maiden name, which only seems appropriate since their music feels like it springs from a sepia photograph capturing a moment of the past in the era of homesteads, lace, and corduroy, with their sister harmonies awaking something both archaic and timeless in the hearts of listeners.

The origin story of catching fire on social media is strikingly currently though. But instead of speedily capitalizing on viral fame, this sister trio has shown smart and promising instincts, and unexpected patience as they play the long game. Upon the release of their second EP, they’re clearly still considering themselves in a development phase, looking to refine their songwriting, find a sound unique to them, while continuing to accrue skins on the wall with significant touring and important appearances.

Homecoming displays an array of sounds indicative of their neotraditional approach, and features multiple producers and co-writers behind them as they probe the music community for collaborators who feel comfortable to them. This includes songwriter/performers like Flatland Cavalry’s Cleto Cordero, Colby Acuff, Erik Dylan, and Casey Beathard, as well as well-known producers such as Beau Bedford and Daniel Tashian. But no matter the other names involved, the songs still feel very personal to the sisters who co-write all their original stuff.


A cover of Patty Loveless’ “You Don’t Even Know Who I Am” originally written by Gretchen Peters is an obvious exception, and one of the crown jewels of this EP. Again, it’s the instincts of the sisters that gives you such hope for their future, while the real-time results in the present are powerful too. Cover songs have been critical to forging the compelling experience of witnessing The Castellows. But it’s the original songs of Homecoming that define the project.

These are young women with old souls, which is so vital to their cross-generational appeal. This aspect comes out in the perspective on time in the opening song “Old Way.” The songs “Freeway” and “Homecoming” are great examples of their traditional country approach intertwined with a fresh perspective that gives the listening experience a sense of vigor and immediacy. But the song that really strikes at your heartstrings is the story of love and commitment that inspires “Broke,” set in coal country.

Where the Castellows swing and miss is collaborating with Daniel Tashian on the song “Sheltered.” Famous for squeezing everything cool out of Kacey Musgraves, Tashian’s more contemporary approach sticks out like a sore thumb. But even here, after the introductory sequence, the song settles in and feels very personal to the Balcom sisters who were home schooled, and do have to grapple with the world from a somewhat sheltered perspective.

They’re much better off sticking with Beau Bedford, who produced the lion’s share of this EP, and understood that what makes The Castellows so resonant is their ability to bridge the young and old, the new and classic. As they sing in the track “Freeway,” they were born 40 years too late. But in a strange alignment of the stars, this makes The Castellows perfect for this moment. Country music is coming home, and so are The Castellows on Homecoming.

8.2/10

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Stream Homecoming

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