In the 70s there was a genre called adult contemporary. It was the kind of organic loungy music that was not the bubble gum of pop but found artists in the middle of country and jazz. There was none of the country twang, nor the complex excursions in jamming that jazz ventures off into. More produced than folk;, but many former folk artists would cross over into this for radio play. Mellow is certainly a fitting word to describe it. There are no aspirations to induce dancing. This is what Webster's music invokes. This is my first time hearing her, and the opening track of her new album is quite nice, though I hope other dynamics are engaged or if this is what she does for the entire record it might get boring.
Going into this all I knew about her is that she is from Atlanta, a city I spent a fair amount of time in, and her mom used to play her Allison Krauss album that she has claimed influenced. I do not hear the Krauss influence on this first song. If you are smoking pot and cleaning your house on a rainy day I can hear where this might be the perfect soundtrack,. There is a more orchestrated accompaniment in the second song, It does make sense to me that she is signed to Secretly Canadian. I just reviewed the new Waxahatchee album, and she was getting the indie rock tag thrown on her when she is more of a country artist, and it feels like the roles are reversed for Webster, who feels more indie than country. I stumbled across her while looking for new country music.
"I Want to Quit All the Time" finds us getting into who she really is and the melancholic side that is her true internal dialogue. Jazz begins to creep into the with the guitar licks playing around. Then things get really interesting with 'Lego Ring" as percussion builds a groove and effects swirl around her voice. This is all done without sacrificing the warmth. "Feeling Good Today" might have the best lyrics yet, as it retains more of the pop feel. "Lifetime' is the first song that feels like filler, it sounds good, but also sounds like a better song to put on when it's time for a nap than something to engage me. This song stretches out into almost more of a drone with the vocals becoming repetitive.
"He Loves Me Yeah!" is the first song I would call upbeat and is certainly more pop. But it works really well, so is hard to argue with. "Ebay Purchase History" feels like the down-tempo lounge remix of the previous song as it follows a similar cadence. The album's most country moment might be the title track. It ambles along with the 70s mellow vibes. The last song pretty revisits most of the sounds we have already heard from her. I would be surprised if she did not smoke a ton of pot. I will give this album a 9.5, as the strong songs balance out the moments that wander in the mellow vibes and get a little lost. If you are looking to chill but still want depth this album is for you.
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