Today in country music, it is surprisingly hard to find real country music, especially with women in country music, as many of them find success by being very pop influenced. But sometimes, I come across some young female country artists that are country through and through. The artist like this most recently discussed on Queens of Country was Bailey James, a thirteen year old singer/songwriter who makes music that sounds traditional, but lyrically is tailored to the younger generation. Savanna Chestnut is another one I've come across, who instead of singing songs tailored to a specific group, sings songs that could appeal to a large range of listeners.
If you've heard Brandy Clark's new record Big Day in a Small Town you know that her record was a concept record, telling the story of a small town. This EP is somewhat like that, telling the story of a country girl from a small town. Chestnut's voice is faintly similar to Miranda Lambert, but her blunt, and sometimes comical songwriting style is more similar to Kacey Musgraves.. The opening track "Trailer Park Queen" is directly related in theme to Musgraves's controversial hit "Follow Your Arrow" The song talks about not fitting it, with Chestnut admitting "the girls never did like me much," because "I drink too much and I cuss too loud." It's about being yourself, and it also embraces living simply and not caring about trivial things. "Story of My Life" talks about Chestnut's lifestyle more in depth, with a lively fiddle moving the song along.
"Roses Were Red (Screw You)" starts out in the fashion of a typical love song/poem with "Roses were red, violets were blue," but it quickly elevates into "I threw them all away. Screw you." The upbeat, funny track is a standout, along with the next track, "My Hands." In history, the women with the softest hands were the highest class, and throughout history, as well as today, someone's hands can tell you a lot about a person. Chestnut solidifies her persona as first brought about in "Trailer Park Queen" in "My Hands": she's not a girly girl, and she's tough. But she's also harder to love, but she says in this song "if you take my hand, well that's a real good start. Cause my hands say all you need to know about my heart."
It's important to note that all of these songs are still in demo form. This is what Chestnut is able to make in the rawest and realest sense. I think a great sense of how talented an artist is is by looking at what they are able to do with limited resources: how good their demos and worktapes are, and how good they are even playing at low paying and honestly some not so great gigs. Even through the slight roughness, the diamond in the rough is clear. Chestnut has a bright future in country music, and if the industry starts letting country back into country music, she is sure to find success.
Best tracks: My Hands, Roses Were Red (Screw You)
Throwaway tracks: none
Overall rating: 4 crowns
It's important to note that all of these songs are still in demo form. This is what Chestnut is able to make in the rawest and realest sense. I think a great sense of how talented an artist is is by looking at what they are able to do with limited resources: how good their demos and worktapes are, and how good they are even playing at low paying and honestly some not so great gigs. Even through the slight roughness, the diamond in the rough is clear. Chestnut has a bright future in country music, and if the industry starts letting country back into country music, she is sure to find success.
Best tracks: My Hands, Roses Were Red (Screw You)
Throwaway tracks: none
Overall rating: 4 crowns
RSS Feed
