The Failed Political Project To Reshape the American Electorate Through Country Music
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Crunching election data, a plan was hatched under the premise that if the institution of country music could be assuaged to become a political tool, it could help persuade the rural slice of the American electorate from red to blue.
Listen to The Trishas’ Jamie Lin Wilson’s “Here Tonight” Ahead of New Album
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What makes the queen bees of the Texas country power quartet The Trishas so special is that if you separate the four ladies out individually, they all still have enough magnanimous sway to amass an impressive listening audience by themselves, and songwriter Jamie Lin Wilson is a perfect example of that. Remaining restless and hungry through a hiatus in The Trishas…
Song / Video Review – Earl Dibbles Jr.’s “City Boy Stuck”
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One of the funniest moments of the “Country Boy Song” video was when Earl Dibbles comes up on a couple of pastel-wearing “city boys” stuck on the side of the road in an imported compact sedan. It was so funny the first time and was mentioned in the lyrics of “Country Boy Song,” why not elaborate on it? That’s what Earl Dibbles Jr. does on “City Boy Stuck.”
Album Review – Mandolin Orange’s “Such Jubilee”
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As a two-piece duo that isn’t prone to veering too much off their path or putting any acrobatics into their music to gain attention, there will always be a certain capacity to the crowd it will draw. But Such Jubilee adds to the sweet little legacy of music that doesn’t just set heads to bobbing and limbs twitching, but fills the spirit with a light that glows long after the music ceases.
Bret Michaels of Poison Pretty Much Just Released the Worst Country Song Ever
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Well look what the cat dragged in, it’s Bret Michaels from Poison with his Maybelline eyes giving a new definition to the term “coyote ugly” with his caustic and aggressively-unoriginal song “Girls On Bars.” Congratulations country music, your hair metal phase has just graduated from figurative to literal.
How Independent Ownership of Music Is Slowly Being Acquiesced to Larger Corporations
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Last week, lost among the shuffle of a slew of bad news stories on the country music front was the news that mega concert promoter Live Nation had purchased a 51% controlling stake in the largest independent music festival in the country—Manchester, Tennessee’s Bonnaroo. The specifics of the deal looked very similar to the deal struck in December of 2014 when they purchased Austin’s C3 Presents.
Brantley Gilbert Releases PRO Bro-Country Protest Single “Same Old Song”
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Disregard that discussions about Bro-Country now feel like old hat ever since the trend trailed off except for a few last vestiges of outdated-feeling singles working through the system, Brantley Gilbert has decided he’s fed up with all the fuss about Bro-Country and has released a single saying as much. The song criticizes complaints about Bro-Country by listing off many of the same common tropes of the trend.
Just Shut Up and Get Chris Stapleton’s “Traveller” Already
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It’s a national embarrassment that an artist, singer, and songwriter like Chris Stapleton is just now getting his feet onto the ground floor of stardom while the morons he’s penning super hits for are out there starring in their own prime time televised specials. Forget the reams and reams of songwriting credits Stapleton’s accrued for a second; this dude can sing the pants off of anyone else.
Why Yelawolf’s “Love Story” Is Important to Country Music
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Yelawolf has just released one of the biggest albums in American music at the moment. Love Story came in at #3 on the Billboard Top 200 last week, and where Radioactive flopped, Love Story has bounced. Love Story has some serious ties to country music that can’t go overlooked.
George Jones Explains What’s Wrong with Country Radio
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The fight for country radio to actually represent the people it is supposed to serve is an eternal one, and nothing illustrates this more than a recently-unearthed interview with George Jones taped backstage at the Grand Ole Opry dating back to February 21st, 1998. Think about it: This was 17 years ago, but every point George Jones makes is a poignant one, and one that is still patently relevant today.
Woman Becomes Militant Lesbian After Hearing Little Big Town’s “Girl Crush”
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“I used to be your average suburban mom of two. Trust me, I was very average,” says Susan Berkenstock of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. “Now I have spiked hair, wear checkered shorts and deck shoes everyday, and all I want to do is go camping.” What was the cause of Mrs. Berkenstock’s lifestyle transformation? She claims it all happened while listening to the current country music hit from Little Big Town called “Girl Crush.”
Jason Isbell Releases “24 Frames” From Upcoming “Something More Than Free” Album
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July 17th can’t get here quick enough for fans of the highly-decorated songwriter and Americana star Jason Isbell. That’s the day his much-anticipated release Something More Than Free hits stores—the followup to his heavily-decorated album Southeastern from 2013. Isbell has just made the new album available for pre-order, and has also released the first single from the album called “24 Frames.”
Album Review – Todd Grebe & Cold Country’s “Citizen”
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Alaska via east Nashville is not a narrative you normally see play out in the itineraries of country records. But who would question whether the wilds of Alaska have enough wide open spaces, scenic vistas, or snarly honky tonks and hard times to inspire a good country song? Nobody would after listening to Todd Grebe & Cold Country’s new record Citizen.