Contemporary Country Music Thread (#protectkacedworld)

Let's talk Aguachile Alley

Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:00 pm

post recommendations, commentary, w/e. my scope of knowledge is somewhat limited but my enthusiasm is high.

this is probably paradoxically old-fashioned for the "contemporary" country thread but i downloaded vince gill's album from last year (guitar slinger) after the CMAs and shit rips. plus there's a collabo with amy grant. i would die for amy grant (sorry vince)
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:15 pm

Vince Gill's album with Paul Franklin this year which is covers of classic Bakersfield songs is also really amazing. Dude has been on a huge role for about 6 years or so. When he stopped trying to be popular and just transitioned into everyone's favorite session musician. The Time Jumpers are legitimately one of the best bands in the world - even if it's not "contemporary" sounding (they're a Western Swing band), but they are so fucking good live and their record from last year was in my Top 20 I think.

One thing people don't realize is that Kellie Pickler is actually really really good. "100 Proof" from last year got a lot of love from "alt. country" writers and was ignored for the most part from the mainstream, which was ok. Her new album just leaked and is definitely more modern sounding - lots of electric guitar and stuff, but it definitely fits nicely alongside Ashley Monroe and Kacey Musgraves and even the new Leann Rimes album. It's like a softer Miranda Lambert or whatever, but yeah a total surprise.

Speaking of Ashley Monroe: This Tiny Desk Concert will make you fall in love:

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Postby Ersaph » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:15 pm

I've been digging Brandy Clark and Eric Church lately
And I feel like this year is really about, just the year of realizing stuff.
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Postby mellowgold » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:15 pm

Kacey Musgraves approves!

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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:22 pm

I know a lot of people are going to see through this song (and video especially), because it is pretty corny - but in the Nashville scene, it's a pretty ballsy thing to do. Obviously he has some PR machine trying to position him as the anti-Nashville Nashville guy with the song. And the anti-Trucks (Aldean, etc) musicians are definitely prevalent on the fringes, but Wade Bowen actually has some moderate mainstream success and I feel like if he was a more attractive dude, would be like the next Brad Paisely type dude who is a legit good musician that Nashville accepts. (Paisley has put out heaps of terrible songs). Point being - this could be a suicide song for his career, or it could actually posit him into success. Nashville is so corrupt though, it'll probably just linger on the fringes and do nothing.

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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:24 pm

definitely been meaning to download 100 proof, i'll check it out. this is more on the alt-country side but i'm gonna plug lydia loveless to you guys because she's great and my friend drums for her now (not the guy in this video):

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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:29 pm

Ersaph wrote:I've been digging Brandy Clark and Eric Church lately


I like Eric Church's role in the mainstream scene, and he is certainly the best songwriter (only?) of the current crop of huge musicians, but I can't really get into his music. The Brandy Clark album is pretty great though, but I guess we should have known that.

I'll be a bit controversial here because I think Randy Houser is actually just about the absolute worst popular dude in country, but I fucking love this song and still I totally understand it's terrible. You could hear Nelly singing this shit or Uncle Kracker or anything, but I just think it's unbelievably catchy.



It reminds me a lot of when other country musicians do Will Hoge's songs. Like when Eli Young Band covered "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" which I think is one of the best huge singles of the last 5 years.


But it's quite a bit different than Hoge's version:



Speaking of Hoge though, he does the current Chevy song, which is a huge deal for a pretty minor musician. And the song is so AMERICA and Hallmarky in it's earnestness, but I think it's a great, great song.

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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:30 pm

man, if that wade bowen song is supposed to be super offensive and dangerous to the nashville status quo then i underestimated how sensitive they are about stuff like that. it's pretty damn great and honestly affecting, and he, like, explicitly opens the second verse saying "no offense guys".
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:32 pm

The dudes on top are offended super easy. I mean think of the biggest meatheads you know and then double their insecurities.
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Postby Ersaph » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:33 pm

Not mainstream per se, but Laura Cantrell is one of my faves and I copped her new album a few weeks back and love it so
And I feel like this year is really about, just the year of realizing stuff.
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:33 pm

But I think that it won't offend the musicians that much, because I think that Bowen has actually toured with a lot of the bigger dudes as a pretty unsuccessful opening act, but moreso just the status quo/single makers. Even if it is to the point that some other recording house or songwriting team gets mad at him for not thinking of doing the same thing.
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:34 pm

Ersaph wrote:Not mainstream per se, but Laura Cantrell is one of my faves and I copped her new album a few weeks back and love it so


She's so great.
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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:35 pm

laughed at the abrupt synth burble at the end of "runnin' outta moonlight".
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Postby The Priest » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:36 pm

Thank you for reading my posts ❤️
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Postby a falsetto child » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:39 pm

If people are going to drop Loveless and Cantrell in this thread, then I'm definitely bringing up Cahoone.

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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:39 pm

this song/video are super ham-fisted too, but kind of powerful too. I feel like I would drink with this guy or maybe even have and anyway, great bar song even if it's about how addiction and being fucked up is essentially why everything sucks.

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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:43 pm

what's everyone's opinion of this? i tend to be pro-anything that pushes the boundaries of the format so i was grinning pretty consistently through my first couple of listens

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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:44 pm

discussing the "heartland rock"-ification of country/transference of mainstream rock radio to country could be an entire thread on its own
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:44 pm

Alan Jackon's "Bluegrass Album" from this year is really good. It's not Bluegrass, it's more traditional country than anything, but there are some bluegrass elements, sure. It was just a pretty cool thing for him to do. One of the most successful country musicians of all time, he essentially said "fuck it" and did a couple of shows at the Station Inn in Nashville to test these sogns and then got this nice hype bubble around him and released this album. I think it's mostly covers, but he writes a bunch too. Anyway, good traditional sounding stuff that is still getting some radio/video play.

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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:45 pm

hey look wrote:this song/video are super ham-fisted too, but kind of powerful too. I feel like I would drink with this guy or maybe even have and anyway, great bar song even if it's about how addiction and being fucked up is essentially why everything sucks.




holy shit, this is amazing. thank you hey look, MVP of this thread
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Postby tgk » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:47 pm

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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:47 pm

murray st. wrote:what's everyone's opinion of this? i tend to be pro-anything that pushes the boundaries of the format so i was grinning pretty consistently through my first couple of listens

(eric church - the outsiders)


Kinda like what I was saying: I like what this dude does with his power and he seems like a pretty fun/smart guy - but I'm a traditionalist at heart, so a lot of the ways in which his music leans (being more ROCK than Country), goes to the spectrum of alt. country that I don't really get down with. That being said, he definitely opens the ears of a lot of really stupid country music fans.
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:52 pm

Sturgill Simpson's "High Top Mountain" is my favorite album of the year. It's only new LP I've bought and definitely the record I've listened to the most this year, probably along with like Yeezus. Anyway, it's "traditional" but the dude is recognized reasonably well as being on the fringes of the mainstream. He's played the Opry and gets a lot of press, but I think he's a bit TOO traditional to really get mainstream success. Regardless, he's a fucking hoot - it's like amped up Waylon Jennings stuff. This is his only music video, but it's probably my least favorite song on the record:



Here are some other videos though:


(another song about the shit that is the Nashville model)


C'Mon. The opening line of this song is "well, i've been spending all my money on weed and pills trying to write a song that'll pay the bills. but it ain't came yet, I guess I'll have to rob a bank"
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Postby murray st. » Tue Nov 12, 2013 2:02 pm

enjoyed the shit out of the guitar playing in that last sturgill simpson video.
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Postby Kafkaesque » Tue Nov 12, 2013 2:14 pm


this is the most popular song every time i flip to the country station.
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Postby Ersaph » Tue Nov 12, 2013 2:22 pm

Luke Bryan and Eric Church are kinda hot to me
And I feel like this year is really about, just the year of realizing stuff.
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Postby kit fox » Tue Nov 12, 2013 2:48 pm

don't know if she counts but I can not stop listening to Caitlin Rose. someguy knows whats up



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Postby leftproofbox » Tue Nov 12, 2013 2:54 pm

whoawhoa whoawhoawhoa
whoawhoa whoawhoawhoa
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Postby leftproofbox » Tue Nov 12, 2013 2:54 pm

*to the tune of that springsteen joint by eric church. i'm always about two years behind on the real mainstream stuff, song rules pretty hard
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Postby hey look » Tue Nov 12, 2013 3:11 pm

I count Caitlin Rose as country, I guess but moreso her last album than "The Stand-In", which is still great - but definitely even more pop leaning than her other stuff.
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