allow me to enthuse qualifiedly about ashley monroe's the blade. when the next great country singer arrives - and i think she has - she's not going to sound like dolly, loretta, emmylou, or tammy: she's going to sound like herself. but she will be a traditionalist, or else 'next great country singer' makes no sense. ashley is all that, and i would listen to her sing anything with anyone. she's supple, high-end, effortlessly in the main line of the trad with every breath. perfect country timing.
i guess i think she needs better writing, though. the songs on the blade are a mixed bag. a few are very strong, including the title cut. i'm not sure that any is as good as the best on like a rose ("weed instead of roses," the title cut, "two weeks late," "you ain't porter" etc; also, where is the loretta-ish feminist wildness and wit embodied in those songs??). well, i said the same thing about the new kacey musgraves. maybe i'm just in a mood or something. but i do think the melodies are overly generic ("dixie"), and the lyrics struggle to distinguish themselves (as on "has anybody ever told you," "mayflowers," "the weight of the load").
the first single shows both the strengths and the weaknesses, i think:
this is better:
no one could sing that song any better than that.
her look is too processed right now for my taste, and the look kind of corresponds to the sound. this much glamor is unnecessary. she was more charming like this, i believe:
