Probably prompted by the success of her collaboration with Zedd, Maren Morris is the latest in a long line of country singers to cross over to the pop world. Shaniah Twain did it twenty years ago and Taylor Swift is a more recent example. Fortunately, Maren doesn’t seem to be going the same route as her elders: while GIRL is definitely more of a dance/pop album, it isn’t explicitly soliciting and it’s doubtful that we’ll see her half undressed at the VMAs collaborating with a SoundCloud rapper on a Dr. Luke production.
The album still favours traditional songwriting and instrumentation as evidenced the authentic feel of All My Favorite People with the Brothers Osborne or the cool slide guitar solo on The Feels. The Greg Kurstin production does give the record a contemporary pop sheen but never devolves into crass commercialism.
The highlight is a duet with Brandi Carlile entitled Common, a dark, breezy tune with a quasi quasi-trip-hop feel and a dramatic chorus where both voices blend together beautifully.
But opener GIRL, which runs on a chiming, brilliantly simple guitar riff, is also a contender and so is Good Woman, an impossibly ad and slow ballad with piano, strings and acoustic guitar which boasts a characteristically impassioned vocal performance.
It’s a record that very consciously caters to millenials both sonically and lyrically (RSVP is typical prefab pop and could have been churned out by anyone from Kelly Clarkson to Rhianna) which unfortunately excludes this reviewer from the target demographic. It’s full of great hooks delivered with a striking voice and will in most likelihood be a great commercial success: all the elements have been assembled to that effect.
Join Apple Music HERE to listen to the entire album below:
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