CD Reviews

Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives
Altitude

Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives opens with an instrumental, "Lost Byrd Space Train (Scene 1)," which is a nicely twisted way to phrase the musical roads Stuart travels. Stuart's music incorporates a whole lot of good stuff from traditional country to bluegrass to jangly, ...

Rodney Rice
Rodney Rice

Singer-songwriter Rodney Rice's eponymous album is his third and his first recorded in Nashville after recording his first two in Austin. Hence, the sound and feel of this record, produced, engineered and mixed by Drew Carroll and folks at the Bomb Shelter takes a bit of a left turn from ...

Parker McCollum
Never Enough

Parker McCollum hasn't made a truly great album (yet), but "Never Enough" comes close. There are many standout tracks on this 15-cut release, and most of them are well worth revisiting again and again. We had a hint that good things were on their way when McCollum released the single ...

Del Barber
Almanac

The multi-decorated Canadian singer-songwriter Del Barber returns with his eighth album, "Almanac." In the vein of kindred spirits Colter Wall and Corb Lund, Barber is a working rancher and penned these 12 tunes on his farm in northwestern Manitoba and recorded them with a crack band in Winnipeg. ...

The Rifters
The Enchanted World

The Rifters are an acoustic-country trio based in New Mexico known for their infectious three-part harmonies and regionally steeped music. Formed in 2002 in Taos, which boasts the state's most creative music scene, members of two already popular bands, Jim Bradley and Don Richmond of Hired Hands, ...

Arkansauce
OK to Wonder

Arkansauce is a progressive bluegrass/newgrass quartet hailing from the state embodied in their band name. "OK to Wonder" is their fifth release for the band of Tom Andersen (bass)t Zac Archuleta (guitar), Ethan Bush (mandolin) and Adams Collins (banjo, piano). Each sings lead, harmonies ...

Bella White
Among Other Things

A buzz is beginning to build about Bella White being this year's breakout Americana star. The young British Columbia, Canada-based musician is already on a major roots label, and that, if nothing else, should make you take notice. "Among Other Things" is a major project produced by ...

Caitlyn Smith
High & Low

The title track to this Caitlyn Smith album was co-written with Miley Cyrus, one that likely knows a thing or two about getting high. However, this is not a drug song (at least not intentionally so), but one that explores the ups and downs of life instead. In fact, Smith had initially considered ...

William Prince
Stand in the Joy

When producer Dave Cobb's name appears on an album, you take quick notice. The Canadian singer-songwriter William Prince's fourth release, "Stand in the Joy," checks all the right boxes – a warm, soulful voice, enduring, relatable songs, and with Cobb at the wheel, a stellar ...

Ian Jones
Results Not Typical

Singer-songwriter Ian Jones gives the impression that he's been making records for years. Yet, "Results Not Typical" is his full-length debut following his EP in 2021. Jones is no upstart, but a life-long, self-taught musician and songwriter. Though Jones was raised on country music, ...

Jake Ybarra
Something in the Water

Jake Ybarra, a native Texan, is the latest Nashville-based singer-songwriter making his first full-length auspicious debut with "Something in the Water." Ybarra is a first-rate storyteller as we immediately glean from the opener "Late November," about a short-lived romance before ...

The Hackles
What a beautiful thing I have made

The Hackles are a retro sounding folk rock group with country overtones and gorgeous three-part harmony vocals akin to those of The Haden Triplets as a point of reference. "What a Beautiful Thing I Have Made" is their second full length album and carries both intimacy and tension, created ...

Carter Sampson
Gold

Carter Sampson, dubbed "The Queen of Oklahoma," returns for "Gold," her seventh full-length, essentially a collaborative effort with her longtime musical partner, multi-instrumentalist Kyle Reid, who also engineered, mixed and co-produced. The first five songs were recorded in her ...

Various Artists
Stoned Cold Country

Unlike a few previous country artist tributes to other rock acts, the Rolling Stones also have some real country in 'em. Many of these twangier sounds were inspired by Keith Richards' friendship with country-rock pioneer Gram Parsons. Mick Jagger has likely never considered himself a country ...

Lynn Miles
TumbleWeedyWorld

The multi-decorated Canadian singer-songwriter Lynn Miles brings us her 16th album, "Tumbleweedy World," 10 originals that cover considerable thematic ground, but are essentially grounded in relatable observations on relationships. Backed by a fully simpatico acoustic band that adds just ...

Willie Nelson
Don't Know A Thing About Love

Who doesn't love and respect Willie Nelson? Willie, even at age 90, could sing the phone book – perhaps he has – and it would be worth hearing. Willie's latest is a tribute to the songwriting of Harlan Howard, the dean of country music songwriters, who passed away in 2002. ...

Morgan Wallen
One Thing At A Time

Morgan Wallen's album, which is longer than the average movie or concert (at nearly two hours), is too long. Perhaps even a Wallen apologist would agree with that assessment. Yes, it may be possible to have too much of a good thing. Few artists can create such an epic full-length without at least ...

The Panhandlers
Tough Country

You might say Panhandlers' "Tough Country" picks up and expands on where its "West Texas Is The Best Texas" EP left off. It includes that project's few songs, which were mostly lighthearted in nature, and adds a bigger dosage of lyrical seriousness. ...

Matt Hillyer
Glorieta

Chances are pretty good that you've heard Matt Hillyer sing before. The former frontman for the Texas band Eleven Hundred Springs, which ended its 23-year run in 2021, is now taking the solo route. These 11 songs are all written or co-written by Hillyer, some with the familiar honky-tonk ...

Dierks Bentley
Gravel & Gold

Dierks Bentley opens his first self-produced album with a song about personally stability, "Same Ol' Me." Although its lyric explains how while life circumstances may change, Bentley basically remains the same person. The same thing, though, can also be said about the country star's music. ...