“They don’t make ‘em like they used to,”
is the clichéd complaint often lodged by classic country lovers about
contemporary music so overproduced or cookie-cutter commercial that to
label it C&W is a stretch. But with some judicious searching, it’s
not hard to find young artists who stay true to the archetypes of Hank
Sr., George Jones, Loretta Lynn, Emmylou Harris and others while
updating the sound just enough to not appear slavish imitators. On her
sophomore release, it’s clear that Kelsey Waldon is firmly in that camp.
Waldon doesn’t stray from the template of
stripped-down ballads, waltz-time weepers and high-lonesome
heartbreakers chronicled on her terrific 2014 debut. Waldon’s honeyed
voice, sweet-tart lyrics and gently rolling melodies shape songs whose
choruses are so memorable, you’ll think you heard originals such as the
defiant “All By Myself” before. The opening fast shuffle of “Dirty Old
Town” with its squiggly, snakelike pedal steel seems plucked from the
Flying Burrito Brothers and the bluesy lope of “Don’t Hurt The Ones
(Who’ve Loved You The Most)” takes a page out of the Dwight Yoakam
sing-‘em-and-weep songbook.
The production keeps the instrumentation
basic with few obvious overdubs and a focus on Waldon’s voice, lyrics
and tunes. Like Harris and Lee Ann Womack, Waldon never oversells these
performances, which makes them feel even more personal, touching and
occasionally bitter as in the rebellious kiss-off “You Can Have It.” She
even rocks out on the snappy lyrics of “False King” (“You can’t place a
crown on the head of a clown/ And hope he turns out to be a king”).
But it’s the ballads that dominate and
where Waldon shines brightest. She spins stories with the heart and soul
found in the most classic of country music, proving that they do indeed
still make ‘em like they used to.
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