Starting Over doesn't do so much of what its title suggests as it builds on Chris Stapleton's solid foundation across rootsy music for another decisive step forward.
Country singer-songwriter Rachel Brooke reflects on life in a small town where winters are long and comforts can be few in "The Lovells Stockade Blues".
California singer-songwriter Rick Shea, whose credits include stints with Dave Alvin and Chris Gaffney delivers a dispatch on life of this most trying of years, 2020.
Drawing on inspiration from Gillian Welch, Ryan Martin delivers a song that taps into classic country-rock of the early 1970s. "You can certainly dance to it," he says.
Brent Cobb's Keep 'Em on They Toes brings people together by reminding us of our unique individuality, and the things that bind us together are all part of the same gestalt.
Waylon Payne details a journey from addiction to redemption on Blue Eyes, The Harlot, The Queer, The Pusher & Me, his first album since his 2004 debut.
3 Pairs of Boots are releasing Long Rider in January 2021. The record demonstrates the pair's unmistakable chemistry and honing of their Americana-driven sound, as evidenced by the single, "Everywhere I Go".
The tracks on the Band of Heathens' Stranger are mostly fun, even when on serious topics, because what other choice is there? We all may have different ideas on how to deal with problems, but we are all in this together.
On Aftermath, Elizabeth Cook reflects on what has passed and continues as a protagonist who has been changed by experience. She's not willing to accept what is.
Wood Brothers' guitarist and vocalist, Oliver Wood releases a new reading of well-known the protest anthem with Bandcamp proceeds going to the ACLU. "I wanted to contribute something that kept peoples' momentum going," he says.
A voice from the past re-emerges stronger and better than ever as Dianne Davidson releases Full Circle, her first album since 1988.
Americana artist Brennen Leigh's "Billy and Beau" offers a story of LGBTQ+ love and coming-of-age that remains universally relatable.
Singer-songwriter Ruston Kelly discusses his new album, Shape & Destroy, facing demons, and working with family.
On Shape & Destroy, country music's Ruston Kelly finds a way to offer an unbroken hallelujah.
Taylor Swift's childhood has frequently acted as the rare domain that can neither be snatched by tabloids nor staked out by fans, but "seven" from her latest LP folklore presents a narrative of innocence dragged out of a child by abuse.
Alt-country veterans the Mavericks mix their Latin heritage with their rock and country roots on En Español.
Singer-songwriter Stephanie Lambring's "Fine" is an empowering Americana anthem that embraces self-drive and independence.
Mary Chapin Carpenter ponders life, love, depression, and political mendacity on The Dirt and the Stars.
Born in isolation not so much by outside mandate as by natural inspiration, H.C. McEntire's Eno Axis is a masterwork of deep, spiritual escapism.
Country/folk singer-songwriter Arlo McKinley's debut Die Midwestern marries painful honesty with solid melodies and strong arrangements.
Charley Crockett's Welcome to Hard Times invokes the same misery and corruption as E.L. Doctorow's Welcome to Hard Times: the world is just a rigged casino where one can never get a break or even hope to break even.
The Balladeer will only help cement Lori McKenna's reputation as one of America's finest musical artists. These 10 songs will bring a tear to your eye and remain stuck in your brain.
Bonnie Whitmore shares her latest single "Right/Wrong" ahead of upcoming LP, Last Will and Testament, which is a powerful and thought-provoking follow-up to her 2016 release.
Bobbie Gentry's The Delta Sweete has been hailed as a lost and unjustly ignored masterpiece. Now it's finally being reissued after more than 50 years with ten bonus cuts.
Astral planes, Nietzsche's Doctrine of Eternal Recurrence, and UFOs -- they're all just part of Western Terrestrials' Roger Miller tribute, Back in the Saddle of a Fever Dream.
Gaslighter is bold and incendiary, finding the Chicks reclaiming their relevance. Thankfully, the Chicks reject silencing as Gaslighter reestablishes their penchant for vocalizing raw truths.
Victoria Bailey emerges with "Skid Row", a country romp that's an ode to an LA honky-tonk and the classic California Bakersfield sound.
Folk rocker S.G. Goodman discusses changing hearts and minds in the rural American South, all while releasing her debut album in the middle of a global pandemic. Goodman is a rising artist to watch.
On Corb Lund's Agricultural Tragic, he sings of grizzly bears, tattoos, hunting rats and elk, the meaning of author Louis L'Amour's fiction, and the meaning of life.
Texas' Joshua Ray Walker creates songs on Glad You Made It that could have been on a rural roadhouse jukebox back in the 1950s. Their quotidian concerns sound as true now as they would have back then.
Country legend Willie Nelson employs his experience on a strong set of songs to take a wide look around him.
Margo Price was marketed as country rock because of her rural roots. But she was always more rock than country, as one can hear on That's How Rumors Get Started.
"I Think You Oughta Try Whiskey" is Americana artist Corb Lund's latest single. "It's an old fashioned country couple-style duet with my friend Jaida Dreyer."
Social unrest, a global pandemic, and an industry that has forever been changed? No problem. Old Crow Medicine Show's Ketch Secor stares down the future.
Jeb Loy Nichols finds humor in ambiguity, and real sadness in the joy of being in the current moment on his new EP, Season of Decline.
COVID-19 sure sucked the life out of things. I found some comfort in Jewel. That's right. Jewel.
Country artist Willie Jones' "Trainwreck" is an accessible summertime breakup tune that coolly meshes elements of the genre's past, present, and future.
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