First Impressions: Country Again (Side A)
- Sara Pierson
- Mar 15, 2021
- 3 min read
Son of country singer Rhett Akins, Thomas Rhett had some big shoes to fill in the genre of country. He has a reputation as a songwriter but has put out his fair share of country albums as well as jumped into mainstream pop joining artists like Taylor Swift and Dan and Shay. He has a history being apart of the Bro country era and hasn’t really been able to outrun that phase of his music career. Clearly that hasn’t stopped him from being successful in the country music industry as he has won Aritst of the Year at the 2020 ACM Awards and continues to be nominated for a handful of categories this year.
This feels like an appropriate return to the foundations of country music for Thomas Rhett. He never truly was what I would call a true blue country artist. He was introduced to me in the bro country era of the 2010’s and continued to stray further from the genre with a few hits that charted in the country category. However, in the same vein as Justin Bieber singing ‘10,000 Hours’ with country pop duo Dan and Shay, it fets very much like a pop artist pretending to be a country artist. This three track A side introduces a more country style of arrangement with acoustic guitars and pedal steel, but the country elements are still out weighed by the pop production and bro lyrics.
Stand Out Tracks
Want It Again -
This song is really nice. It is more acoustic which I think shows off more of his country vocal ability. The instrumentation includes a fingerpicked acoustic guitar and a pedal steel that create a country sound. The track does have a pop production so be prepared for lots of layered vocals and and percussion that is kind of a distraction from the lyrical content. On the topic of lyrics, I actually really enjoyed them. It’s a cute story about a guy saving his heart for a girl he once loved. They aren't particularly descriptive but I believe that you can get a full story with what’s there.
What’s Your Country Song -
If you don’t know what Bro Country is, welcome to the world of Bro Country. This song is full of country music cliques and has an overly pop production, however I’m actually a fan of bro country so I don’t hate it. The melody is catchy and the electric guitar parts have a really cool sound about them. I’m not in love with the artificial sound of the drum set, but with this type of country music it’s hard to come across with an authentic sound.
Must Listen
Want It Again
Thomas Rhett will never be the country artist that makes the soulful and rich neo traditional music that is becoming more popular. To be honest, I think I prefer him closer to pop than country anyway. He makes really good pop music and there is definitely an audience for his type of music in the country world. ‘Country Again’ feels like false advertising as I don’t think he was ever something I would consider country and these tracks don’t exude enough of the traditional country sound I think he is trying to reach. I’ve always liked Thomas Rhett for being the artist that he wanted to be and not letting his history in country music restrict him, but I don’t think he’s come back to country more like a short stay to say hi to a few of his country music fans.
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