Jason Boland & The Stragglers "Squelch" Album Review

      Jason Boland and the Stragglers have been making real country music from the heart of Texas for quite some time now. Rather than waste time with pop fluff, these guys have doubled down on honky-tonkers and songs with weight and substance. The result is a sound that is instantly identifiable. With Jason’s latest album, Squelch, he and the Stragglers take a stand and make protest music that matters. Squelch is certainly a left turn from most of country music, but it is a welcome experience.

Eric Church "Mr. Misunderstood" Album Review

     The night of the CMA Awards, Eric Church dropped a surprise album titled Mr. Misunderstood.  After making an interesting-to-a-fault album in The Outsiders, the release of Mr. Misunderstood finds Eric back in his wheelhouse.  While most artists spend countless months prepping and analyzing every line on an album, Eric wrote, recorded, and shipped this album in a little under 3 months.  Members of his "Church Choir" fan club received free surprise copies the day of the release. Clearly, the roll-out of this album bucks any and all Nashville trends.  Thankfully, the music does as well. Mr. Misunderstood feels fresh, gritty, and unique.  This is Eric Church at his best.

George Strait "Cold Beer Conversation" Album Review

     There are a few things in earth that are constant: life, death, taxes, and George Strait.  No matter what the current trends and fads on the radio may be, you can always count on George Strait releasing great country music that is easy to listen to and staunchly traditional.  Cold Beer Conversation is no different.  This surprise album from George topped the charts among some solid competition.  It once again proves that being consistent and reliable is still marketable in country music.

The 49th Annual CMA Awards: Who SHOULD Win And Who WILL Win

   The 49th Annual CMA Awards will be held on Wednesday, November 4th at 8:00 in Nashville, Tennessee.  Once again, Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will team up to take care of the hosting duties.  A CMA Award is the among the highest honors in country music.  The CMA Awards have always carried more relevance and weight than the ACM Awards or any of the other five hundred country award shows these days.  This year will once again feature many performances from artists outside of the genre, as country music continues to apologize for being country.  John Mellencamp, Fall Out Boy, Justin Timberlake, and Sam Hunt will all grace the stage, despite not actually being country artists.  Meanwhile real country talent like Sturgill Simpson, Courtney Patton, and The Turnpike Troubadours will watch (or not) from home.  Despite the carpetbagging performances and some questionable nominees, there are a lot of positives about this show.  Chris Stapleton is performing with Timberlake, so it may not be half bad.  He also saw a slew of well deserved nominations go his way.  Willie and Merle were nominated.  Hank Williams Jr will take the stage.  Maddie & Tae continue to surge towards the top.  It has potential to still be a decent show.  Below you will find a complete list of who is nominated for each category, who I think SHOULD win, and who I think WILL win.  Happy watching, folks!

Pat Green "Home" Album Review

      Pat Green was one of the biggest stars in Texas when he took his talents to Nashville to take on the world of country radio. While he experienced success, he lost a large chunk of his original fanbase, who accused him of “selling out”. Whether or not Pat was truly a sellout is neither here nor there, but let’s just say both his biggest fans who claim he never changed and his biggest detractors who criticized his frosted tips and mellowed out sound had a legitimate point. After a long hiatus, Pat is back with new album, appropriately titled Home. With the bright lights of Nashville far behind him, Pat gets back to his roots with this new set of tunes.

Zac Brown Band "Beautiful Drug" Single Review

     The Zac Brown Band is one of the most successful country groups of the modern era. They have sold out countless shows while sustaining great radio success. Most importantly, they have done all of this making mostly great country music that was often thought-provoking and poignant. Even their fun songs were interesting and fairly traditional. While Zac and the boys have always called themselves a southern rock band with strong country influences, they have always been one of the standard bearers for actual country music in the mainstream world. They were the ones to call out Luke Bryan and label “That’s My Kinda Night” as “the worst country song of all time”. Now, with the release of their latest album Jekyll + Hyde, The Zac Brown Band has sold out. Their latest single to country radio, “Beautiful Drug”, is an EDM driven disaster of a pop song, and not even worthy of one ounce of the word country.

Josh Thompson "Change: The Lost Record Volume 1" Album Review

     When Josh Thompson first hit it big, a lot of people predicted big things for him.  His first few hits "Beer On The Table" and "Way Out Here" made waves on the charts.  His follow up album, Change", never saw the light of day, as an under-performing though critically acclaimed lead-single "Comin' Around" and label unrest left him without a record deal.  Now that he is under an independent label, Ole Digital, he is finally getting that album out to the public in the form of two EPs.

Dierks Bentley "Riser" Single Review

     In 2015, country music has few ambassadors in the mainstream world.  George Strait and Alan Jackson are no longer relevant.  Traditional fans are looking for someone to show leadership in the genre.  While you won't hear Dierks speaking ill of his buddies in the genre, he will lead by example.  Dierks refuses to leave songs of substance on the cutting room floor.  Sure, he has "5-1-5-0" and "Drunk On a Plane", but those are peppered with "Say You Do", "Bourbon In Kentucky", and his latest, "Riser".  As the title cut of his current album, "Riser" is an anthem we can all get behind.

Carrie Underwood "Smoke Break" Single Review

     After spending some well-deserved time off with her first-born son, Carrie Underwood is back in the spotlight with her new single, “Smoke Break”. No one has ever denied that Carrie has one of the best, if not the best voice in country music history. She can sing anything and make it sound great. Throw in a cheerful disposition, stunning good looks, and a knack for crafting interesting songs and you have a bona-fide superstar. Carrie has it all. Lately she has been really bringing it hard with her song material, and “Smoke Break” is no exception. Carrie once again proves why she is the reigning queen of country music.

The Turnpike Troubadours Album Review

     If I had to perfectly define country music evolution, I wouldn’t have to look much further than The Turnpike Troubadours. While stars in Nashville use the term to justify the fact that their music is anything but country, The Turnpike Troubadours quietly provide an excellent example of it. Their latest, self-titled album falls right in line with their previous efforts. The group shows growth and maturity while sticking firmly to their roots. Making this album self-titled was an excellent decision, because with it we get a perfect musical picture of who The Turnpike Troubadours are and what they are all about.