Metamodern Sounds in Country Music, Melissa

Metamodern Sounds in Country Music, by Sturgill Simpson, makes me like country music if we can call this that.

From the first beat of "Turtles All the Way Down," I said "oh this is good." Feels like a folksy '70s song, but it's country. I had a country phase in the 2000s when I went to North Carolina with a friend who liked country music. But, of course I would have this phase! It's storytelling and can be beautiful. You just need to find the ones that aren't too twangy and I'm here for it.

This is spacey country. My dad calls country music "Country Western" to this day. Maybe this is "Country-Intergalactic." Which is all clear in these lyrics and the cover for this album. We're Civil War era, but also Alien.

"Living the Dream" feels Dolly Parton proper but this tinny, distant echo changes it all. We're out of this world, and also stuck in the 1800s. If they ever do a Bridgerton-style show, but it's Civil War era... Sturgill Simpson is their guy for composing. Oh, that's a spicy image. Banging it out in a hoop skirt to this album... I... have to... go... write this screenplay...

On another sexy aside, Sturgill Simpson looks like if James McAvoy, Jason Mraz, AND Pedro Pascal had a widdle cutie country baby. That's all.

"Long White Line" would be in the Pauly Shore movie Son in Law. So many pop culture references in my review and, well, oh well. Shrug emoji! Again, I love this for its storytelling and vocal variety. Gary thought "Long White Line" was about coke. Nothing has ever told me my husband grew up in Philly than this moment.

Speaking of Gary, why wasn't "The Promise" our wedding song!? This is so sad and gorgeous and Johnny Cash romance! Wait, what the fuck, this is a song I know! The band When in Rome did this and it was corny as fuck! Sing this to me, Sturgill!

Clap clap clap! "A Little Light" has me. We send our son to a Christian preschool (?) (because it's cheap and they're super attentive) that has taught him more about Jesus than I ever guessed. This song is what I imagine he's listening to all day. This is the "Yes, Jesus Loves Me" tambourine jam we all need!

Welcome to the multiverse. Jk, it's just "It Ain’t All Flowers." Guess I needed that line of coke Gary spoke of earlier. As a renowned scaredy-cat, this song was trippy beyond my comfort zone! Too much "white line" for me.

We made it to "Panbowl," which feels like a perfect conclusion to all the rest of this album. This album is folk, country, alien with a side of cocaine. There are elements of Dylan that I love in here, and this song does that for me. I love this album, and didn't need to do a line of coke for that. I love his voice, the guitar, the tinny moments and the outer space grit.

So 5 outta 5 Pedro Pascals singing other-worldy country!