Indie country rock sounds like it won't work. Usually bands try to please fans of both genres and end up alienating everyone. It's too country or too rock. A Thousand Horses does one better- they blur them. (Robin Thicke would be proud) Hailing from Nashville, these guys wear their roots on their sleeves. Their sophomore EP, titled The Landslide, is brimming with rollicking energy. "Tennessee Whiskey" is probably their most "country-fied" song with its story of the road taking its toll on a relationship. Lead singer Michael Hobby has vocal grit to spare on the soaring mid-tempo rocker "What's Happening to Me," the ultimate 'it's not you, it's me' track. Hobby sings, "In the middle of my last free fall I was counting my mistakes/I was cleaning out my closet / Forgot how much these bones could weigh."Put your money on their future now. A Thousand Horses- Facebook What's Happening to Me-
Simply put Striking Matches has spark. Sarah Zimmerman and Justin Davis provide exquisite harmonies on their debut self-titled EP. Many fans will come to know them from their song "When the Right One Comes Along" featured on ABC's Nashville (but sung with such restraint by Sam Palladio), but that is not where the discovery should end. These Matches are at their best when they are singing their hearts out about love lost. On "When the Right One Comes Along" Zimmerman sings about the ease at which love should happen. ("What they're thinking/What you're feeling/You'll no longer have to guess/All those questions finally put to rest when the right one comes along") Another gem not found our their debut is "Not the One." Another brilliantly written ode to resigning to the fact that you are not the one meant to be with another. Striking Matches not only have the music and talent to make it big, but they also have the songwriting capabilities that will give them longevity. Striking Matches- Facebook Not the One-
DJ-ing for a country music radio station gets me exposed to a ton of music. It's all country music, which is bad enough, but there are some groups (Dixie Chicks, Lady Antebellum) that cause me to go over to the dark side for a bit. I'm not knocking the genre but I have no use for songs about trucks, rain, and being middle class. I'm from Georgia-don't need a musical reminder. The Band Perry will go onto my acceptable country music list. I saw their video for If I Die Young this morning and was completely taken by two things- #1) singer's Kimberly Perry's soft melodic tone and B.)the lyrics.
The Band Perry consists of siblings Kimberly, Reid, and Neal. Having only an EP under their belt, lead singer Kimberly sure does know who to write a song. Having written If I Die Young all by herself, the song has such a great perspective and excellent phrasing. And where it matters most-in the delivery- she hits it out of the park, relying on the lyrics to push the song forward rather than bombast vocals.
An melancholy ballad about a woman's wishes if something should happen to her. With spine-tingling lines like A penny for my thoughts/I'll sell them for a dollar/They're worth so much more after I'm a goner/And maybe then you'll hear the words I been singin'/Funny when you're dead how people start listenin'. And having gone through losing a friend way too young this really hits me in the gut. A catchy song with killer harmonies and a great message-no matter the genre.
The Band Perry will no doubt get many Lady Antebellum comparisons due to their 2 guys and a girl lineup. But with songwriting this strong and a full length album not even out, I have high hopes for this new group. The Band Perry- Myspace If I Die Young-
