Album Review – Ty Myers – “The Select”

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#577 (Country Soul) and #550.3 (Texas Country) on the Country DDS.

You’re not just old or out-of-touch. Well, maybe you are. But even if you consider yourself an informed and aware country fan with your ear to the ground, and try to keep up with the up-and-comers who have the future of the country genre in their hands, don’t feel outmatched by the fact that it seems like everywhere you turn these days, there’s some promising young singer and songwriter out there selling out shows, and with millions of monthly Spotify listeners who you never even heard of two weeks ago.

If it seems like these dudes and ladies are coming out of the woodwork, it’s because they are. And it should be taken as a positive sign that country music is in a cycle of rebirth. In years previous there were a lot of young and new performers as well, but they’d be rapping verses over a drum machine, not blowing your mind with turns of phrases in songs they wrote themselves that feature steel guitar in the mix.

Even among the wave of new and promising country performers, Ty Myers is still unique. At only 17 years old, he’s just a pup with ruddy cheeks. But he stands confidently on stage, writes his own songs, sings them with a strong and soulful delivery, and is no slouch as a guitar player either. And though this crusty old music critic is unqualified to make this assessment, young ladies seem to think he’s a dish, which never hurts a singer’s prospects.

Ty Myers was already a shooting star ahead of the release of his debut album The Select. But now it all feels real as opposed to just another guy catching buzz on Tik-Tok. And like so many of these wunderkind performers, Myers is already signed to a major label, though on his terms. Radio play isn’t on the table, at least not at this point. But it doesn’t need to be. Ty Myers already has a swelling fan base to support him.

From Austin, TX, the music of Ty Myers is a soulful and bluesy version of Texas country music that is clean, polished, and refined, yet still earthy and organic. It can appeal to Texas country music fans, mainstream country music fans, while still being appealing to traditional country as well. It feels fresh, but it’s also classic. It pulls strongly from various influences, but comes in a unique mix of them. It’s not wholly original, but it’s distinct enough to separate Myers from the sameness of the Zach Bryan doppelgangers.


And the writing is well advanced beyond Ty’s age. Ty Myers wrote 12 of the 16 tracks by himself, and co-wrote two others with Nashville ringers. But you would never guess this is material from a 17 year old if you weren’t told so in advance. If anything, the perspective of the writing is more mature than what you’re used to hearing from a 48-year-old Luke Bryan. Alcohol is regularly cited, and to be frank, a lot of these tracks are baby making music.

Is Ty Myers really out there getting drunk and shagging women? His breakout song called “Drinkin’ Alone” is about this very thing. Some of this might have a leaven of truth to it, from Ty’s perspective. But a lot of his songwriting might be synthesizing the songs of his musical heroes into stories he’s imagined. Does this affect the authenticity of the music, since not everything comes from lived experiences? It probably does. But let’s also not be ageist against this young man. He’s clearly mature beyond his years, and trying to present music for an adult audience.

It’s fair to call The Select a country soul album with some steel guitar. Without a ton of texturing via instrumentation via The Select—even though a couple of the tracks feature horn sections and strings—it’s really timing and tempo that is used to distinguish the songs from each other. But like so many 16-track albums, the volume of songs begins to expose the similarity of approach to them all, and makes it difficult to give the deserved attention to each individual track.

Myers does surprise you at times though. “Too Far Gone” has unexpected attitude, starting off like something you’d hear from early Tyler Childers, leading into a hard rock song. It’s important to appreciate that this music builds out from Ty’s two greatest attributes: his voice and his growing guitar skills. A country fan will want this album to sound more country, but that’s not necessarily what’s true to Ty Myers and his distinct approach.

And that’s really the big question with Ty Myers. At 17, this could develop in a whole host of different ways. He could become a mainstream country star similar to Parker McCollum. He could follow the current trends, cut things a little more twangy, and be like a Zach Top character. Or he could go in a completely different direction, like a next generation John Mayer, who Myers actually covers on this album (“Man On The Side”).

There is a lot to be determined with Ty Myers, but that’s also one of the things that makes him so intriguing, and full of promise and possibility. The Select does feel a little bit preliminary, like a starting point as opposed to the finished product. But where Ty Myers is starting from is so far advanced from others of his age it makes you excited about where he’s bound. He’s like the Texas country version of Grace Bowers.

You hope he stays close to country, and true to himself. Because that’s the direction all of music is going. But either way, the sky’s the limit for Ty Myers.

7.7/10

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