Dean, Smith relase new material

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 breaking the album down into high and low song sections. Ultimately, she just mixed it all together. Smith, known by many mostly as a successful Nashville songwriter, presents herself as an especially ...

Live at the Ryman

When he was 18, Jackson Dean moved out of a shack on his grandfather's property in the small town of Odenton, Md. and left to pursue a career in music. After just a couple of years, he had a record label deal. Then his debut single, "Don't Come Lookin'," reached number three on Billboard's Country Airplay chart, and his debut album, "Greenbroke," released in 2022, was a hit. Dean's soulful, raw-edged vocals and gripping storylines draw the listener in ...

Supernova

A lover of the cosmos and all things mystical, Caitlyn Smith continues with her astronomy-themed discography on her sophomore album, "Supernova," the follow up to 2018's "Starfire." The opening track, "Long Time Coming" starts out with a punishing drum beat and morphs into a heavily distorted guitar solo, which suggests angry heartbreak and its accompanying frustration. However, Smith bills the song as a "little anthem of hope to myself," having just ...