‘Bad Romantic’ is the kind of country record you wished some of your favorite women of country would cut, but never do. It’s got that denim and bell-bottom 70’s honky tonk country vibe going on strong, unabashedly twangy and country, with a dash of funky energy and attitude.
One thing was clearly evident after traveling to Whitefish, Montana to experience the massive Under The Big Sky Festival with its incredible lineup and expansive grounds: the independent country and roots music we all enjoy has officially arrived. This is no longer a boutique subgenre.
Helping to introduce Summer Dean to the world outside of the traditional country circles in Texas is Colter Wall, who has featured Summer as an opener for him before, and now does something that he’s never done before—both co-writing and dueting on a song with another artist.
A honky tonk sweetheart and certified heartbreaker originally from Canada, for the second record in a row, Whitney Rose has eased off her original traditional country sound that pegged the honky tonk meter at “10” to add a little more old school rock ‘n roll flavor and fervor to her music.
When looking to assemble a draft class of strong and talented country music women to return some balance to the genre, you better not let your gaze shoot over the head of Canadian-born, and Austin-forged singer/songwriter Whitney Rose. They don’t just hand out residencies at Austin’s legendary Continental Club to anyone.
Country music is also one of the few constants in a world of change. The onslaught of technology and the incursion of automation into our lives hasn’t made country music less relevant, it’s made it even more imperative. These are the themes and reminders you will find throughout the latest record from Noel McKay and Brennen Leigh.
In 2019, an interesting new destination festival popped up just outside of Whitefish, Montana called Under The Big Sky. With acts such as Dwight Yoakam, Cody Jinks, Whitey Morgan, and Amanda Shires on the bill, it got the attention of true country fans, but the question was if it would be worth the trek.
What is “Ameripolitan”? It’s an effort to support artists and bands that are too country for country, and that carry a prominent roots music influence. The nominees for the 2020 Ameripolitan Award have been announced in 13 separate categories. One shakeup for the awards in 2020 is there will be no “Outlaw” categories.
Memphis, Tennessee was overrun this weekend with throwback hillbillies, Outlaw roughnecks, and Rockabilly Daddy-O’s/Susie Q’s as part of Dale Watson’s 6th Annual Ameripolitan shindig and awards show. The event culminated in the 6th Annual Ameripolitan Awards.
The 6th Annual Ameripolitan Awards will be transpiring on Monday, February 25th, 2019, but with 50 acts playing over four total days involving six separate venues, it’s become like its own festival, with many opportunities to see your favorite performers with a prominent roots influence.
Netflix has released the 5th Season of their hit original series The Ranch, and as per usual, the episodes are textured with lots of great songs from often overlooked and deserving country music artists, hand selected to help set the mood and theme of each scene.
The playlist is the most current and up-to-date resource of Saving Country Music’s top recommendations of songs, albums and artists. Jon Pardi has just released the song “She Ain’t In It” as the latest single from his album California Sunrise, and it leads the newest editions to Saving Country Music’s Top 25 Streaming Playlist.
Whitney Rose’s “Rule 62″ (which by the way is “Don’t Take Yourself Too Damn Seriously”), is fun and fashionable in that throwback sort of way that’s the rage of independent roots circles at the moment, while also being bolstered by quality songwriting framed within a vintage era that still appeals to the modern perspective.
“Rule #62” which states, “Don’t Take Yourself Too Damn Seriously,” is something the Canadian-born and Austin-dwelling honky tonk throwback singer Whitney Rose steadfastly adheres to, and it’s also the theme behind her upcoming new album of the same name.
The biggest takeaway from SXSW 2017 will be that for the first time since the very inception of the idea over 30 years ago, the annual music gathering experienced a palpable draw down in attendance and industry participation to a degree that it fundamentally changed many of the dynamics and rigors one must endure to attend.
Whitney Rose has relocated to Austin and can be regularly seen playing the famous haunts in the heart of Texas such as Austin’s Continental Club, and Luckenbach. Whitney Rose’s new EP ‘South Texas Suite’ finds her standing on her own two feet as producer, not just songwriter, and putting together what is tantamount to a love letter to her newfound home.
Just what 2017 has in store for us in the country music department remains to be seen. But we do know about what to expect in the release department for at least the first quarter of the year, while rumors abound about the big projects that could come to light later in 2017. Here’s a run down of what we know, what we think we know, and what we would like to believe.
I don’t know what they’re lacing the Canadian municipal water supplies with these days that allows the great frozen north to churn out authentic country and roots artists worthy of ears in bumper crop fashion, but they better import some of that concoction down here to the States post haste because Canada is kicking our ass in cool new country artists per capita.