This week's roundup of new country tunes features Benjamin Tod highlighting a range of country sounds on his new album Shooting star. Elsewhere, Bailey Zimmerman and Max McNown Both offer songs about finding and offering hope when mental health battles rage, while Scotty Hasting teams up with Lee Brice and Dolly Parton for a new version of a song previously recorded by Trace Adkins.
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See all this and more at bulletin boardThe roundup of the best country songs of the week below.
Benjamin Todd, Shooting star
Tod, best known for his work as a member of the Lost Dog Street Band, releases his fourth solo album with Shooting Star, an ensemble that weaves together a sampling of sounds drawn from across the decades of country music, with each song crafted by his own, pained vocal. He articulates the honkytonk of “Tramp Like Me,” the stringy country girl of “Nothing More,” and the heaping gospel, piano sounds of his collaboration with Sierra Ferrell, “One Last Time.” His raw, pained vocals shine on “I Ain't The Man.” Elsewhere, on the title track, this Nashville native delivers a scathing critique of the machinations of Nashville's Music Row, singing, “I ain't kneeling for you or nobody.” As with his previous output, Shooting Star showcases Tod's masterful songwriting and offers a balm for fans of traditional country sounds.
Midland feat. Caitlin Butch, “Vegas”
Midland have just released a deluxe edition of their latest album Just Blueincluding a revised version of 'Vegas', their satiny strait-like ode to Sin City. This time they welcome Red Dirt's Kaitlin Butts, who made waves earlier this year with her theatrical album. Roadrunner! The trio's knack for earlier harmonies remains front and center, further elevated by Butch's confidence, as the song oozes with a neo-traditional country sound.
Max McNown, “Hotel Bible”
Oregon-born, Nashville-based McNown debuted with “A Lot More Free,” which took him to the top of Billboard's Emerging Artist chart this year. He follows with 'Hotel Bible', a raw, folky slice of the heart turned with textured guitar and a blast of happy percussion. Here, coming alongside a lover who “can't shake this sinking feeling,” she provides encouraging, hopeful reassurances, reminiscing about times when they “drank wine and swore we'd change the world.” Overall, “Hotel Bible” marks a solid continuation of McNown's success, positioning him as a newcomer worth watching.
Bailey Zimmerman, “Holding On”
Zimmerman follows up his single “Holy Smokes” with this upbeat track written by Austin Shawn and Blake Whiten. “Holding On” finds Zimmerman delving into issues surrounding mental health with lyrics like “There was a time I had the fight/ And I could make it one more night, but I'm losing my mind.” Ultimately, however, he finds the strength and comfort he seeks in the commitment of a loved one, which helps him through darker moments. Sonically, this bruising track falls squarely in Zimmerman's wheelhouse, a vessel for his grainy vocals – though he slightly tones down the heavily rock-oriented instrumentation of some of his previous efforts, just enough to let the song's timely message shine through.
Kelsea Ballerini, “First Rodeo”
Ballerini offers a preview of her upcoming album Patterns with this languid track about taking risks and establishing new standards in the wake of a breakup. “Take my heart, but take it slow/ 'Cause this ain't my first rodeo,” she sings, imbuing her vocal delivery with a tenderness as she considers a new relationship with hope and a little trepidation. Meanwhile, as she continues to deepen her emotionally excavating style of songwriting, she combines it with her trademark hazy, shimmering country-pop. The Ballerini album Patterns released October 25.
Scotty Hasting, Lee Brice and Dolly Parton, “Til The Last Shot's Fired”
Hastings welcomes Brice and Parton for this remake of Trace Adkins' dark 2009 tribute to fallen soldiers. Fuzzy guitar sets the soundscape as US Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient Hastings takes the first verse, sung from the perspective of a soldier killed during the Civil War, before Brice takes the second verse depicting the story of a soldier who dies during World War II. Both plead for an end to the battles and wars that take life. towards the end, their weathered voices are balanced as Parton's airy, shimmering soprano joins in, offering levity and imbuing the song's bleak message with hope.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/country/best-new-country-songs-midland-benjamin-tod-kaitlin-butts-1235805882/
