The RGM Inbox: Country Edition #2
The first country edition of the RGM Inbox was really well received so we’re back with another collection of country artists to check out. This edition features a range of music from acts that are more than happy to embrace the past and keep things old school to artists firmly in the modern Nashville mainstream. Which style do you prefer?
Nashvillains Photo Credit: Annie Noelker
Pictured L to R: Brett Boyett, Troy Johnson, Scott Lindsey
First up we’ve got a trio of veteran songwriters who’ve written and produced music for feature films, television shows, and major artists such as The Chicks, Keith Urban, Cassadee Pope, James Taylor and Lauren Alaina. Band members Brett Boyett and Scott Lindsey first met in a writing session and the duo hit it off with a vision for a modern take on outlaw country and soon connected with singer Troy Johnson and Nashvillains was born. The first example of their upcoming album is the single ‘Tumbling Down’ which blurs the lines between the old and the new via a nicely judged modern production and Johnson’s gritty yet smooth vocal which adds weight to the tune.
“We wanted to write something that painted a picture of the chaos in the world and the hardships that we all endure. This song has been an autobiographical journey for many of us in the band”
Kansas native Logan Mize has been a fixture of the Nashville scene for well over a decade signing his first record/publishing deal in 2010. Over the years, Mize has certainly put the work in on the road. In 2016, he embarked on a solo acoustic tour booked via social media and travelled more than 20 thousand miles in less than two months in a 1989 Chevy station wagon named "Glenn" running his own sound and lighting performing 3-hour acoustic shows. All this hard work seems to have done the job as his ‘Still That Kid’ album released in January 2021 has been well-received building on the success of ‘Come Back Road’ from 2017 ‘. Mize has a knack for picking singles that are a good representation of small-town America and his latest ‘Practice Swing’ written by top songwriters Randy Montana and Blake Chaffin is no exception. The new single follows on from previous singles lifted from the album including the excellent ‘Grew Apart’.
Photo: Omar Gatica
Now for those of you who like your country music to be more traditional then the debut album from West Of Texas ‘Heartache, Hangovers & Honky Tonks’ is guaranteed to do the job. West Of Texas is the brainchild of singer and songwriter Jerry Zinn who formed the band in 2003 and released an EP in 2010 but health problems derailed his career. Now in 2021 Zinn and West Of Texas finally release their long-delayed album and it lives up to its title. A terrific record full of twangy guitar, crying pedal steel and Zinn’s rich baritone ‘Heartache’ is the perfect bridge between Austin and Bakersfield. Fans of the ‘60s and ‘70s country scene will absolutely love this record. ‘Heartache, Hangovers & Honky Tonks’ will be released on April 16th, 2021 and you can purchase the album direct from the band or buy/stream via Bandcamp.
“From the honky tonk shuffles, western swing, tex-mex, Cajun, ballads, etc. It’s all there…except a waltz. Somehow, I didn’t write a waltz for this record. Next time!”
Photo credit: Midtown Motion
Rounding out our quartet is Matt Stell and his latest single ‘That Ain’t Me No More’ his first release since the ‘Better Than That’ EP in late 2020. With some 390 million cumulative streams and multiple country No.1 singles in ‘Preyed For You’ and ‘Everywhere But On’ Stell is on a roll. I’m pleased to report ‘That Ain’t Me No More’ written by Hardy, Hunter Phelps, Smith Ahnquist, Jake Mitchell and Nick Donley and co-produced by Matt with Ash Bowers displays a notable rock edge in keeping with the lyrical tone of the song as our protagonist might not be that guy anymore but he’s having a hard time adjusting. There are some nice meaty electric guitar and pulsing synths alongside the country steel.