Still + Bright

#rootsRock, #Americana, #country, #contemporaryPop, #garageRock

After her beautiful and sparse 2015 debut Dig showcasing her extraordinary solo traditional folk / bluegrass banjo-picking skills, Tennessee's Amythyst Kiah shifted her studio recording sound to higher-energy, full-band roots rock vibes. With this third album she spins her personal storytelling into a more radio-friendly form, poppier for the front half, more country and garage rock for the back half—but even when less centered, her credentials on the mandolin still shine through in backing instrumentation and solos. A new layered style for vocals provide nice touches of harmony on choruses. Various guest stars from across the current Americana scene join on backing and shared lead vocals, and provide further depth to the instrumentation. Overall, Kiah’s exploration of contemporary pop and rock sensibilities provide a new arena for her to share her process working through the questions of the human condition and the dark politics of the time through stories and optimistic nihilism.
(Btw “Kiah” is pronounced like the car brand Kia. /kijə/)

RIYL: Nathaniel Rateliff, Alabama Shakes, Larkin Poe, Black Keys
Favorites: 6, 9, 10, 11, 12
FCC: I’d call it clean (“goddamn” on 2 and 7, if you’re really worried)

1. (4:18) proud and upbeat kick drum and bent-note electric guitar roots rock song with harmonizing fem vocals from featured S.G. Goodman, quiet backing mandolin
2. (3:25) more bluegrass-influenced folk rock track, features Kiah’s amazing banjo picking, mandolin and violin accompaniment, with tambourine percussion and echoey harmonized vocals
3. (3:40) Mid-tempo garage rock with groovy slide guitar and keys quietly backing electric guitar with catchy singing about self-empowerment in the face of increasingly theocratic American politics
4. (3:57) Mandolin-centered bluegrass pop song with brief fun solos, overall upbeat high energy with kick drum and banjo accompanying, featuring bluegrass star Billy Strings for backing vocals & backing instrumentation
5. (2:58) Fun, upbeat, fast-paced acoustic guitar pop song with pleasant cymbal drumming and occasional backing Western bass, singing duet harmonies with Butch Walker
6. (2:37) Spooky low energy blues rock with slide guitar accompaniment and quiet clunking percussion. Featuring deep, drawled vocals from Avi Kaplan.
7. (3:55) Appalachian ghost story / Southern Gothic about eldritch creatures, in roots rock electric guitar form with catchy bass
8. (3:53) Slow, strummed acoustic guitar folk waltz with lovely backing violin and understated bass, whistled post-chorus
9. (3:36) Bass + picked acoustic guitar with gorgeous harmonizing and backing layered vocals, backing violin and excellent slide guitar fill, subtle rattle/maraca percussion that gains clanging drum
10. (3:13) Refreshing straightforward acoustic guitar + harmonica country song that builds layers of keys and mandolin
11. (3:04) Low highly-distorted electric guitar alt-rock song with clanging percussion with gated reverb, subtle mandolin backing, with shredding and backing choral vocals in post-chorus
12. (3:48) Acoustic guitar + rattle percussion folk song, with occasional harmonized layers and subtle slow backing fiddle sustains and slide guitar accentuation