Hey! Did you know that I started a new podcast called Rainbow Rodeo? I interview the best queer country artists around so we can learn from and build community with each other. (Sounds like another podcast I used to host. IDK. Maybe you’ve heard of it.) I kind of miss the curation aspect but that’s why I’m still doing Adobe & Teardrops playlists! But! I’m not happy with any streaming service, really, so instead of a continuous playlist, here are songs pulled from YouTube, a universally accessible format no matter how you get your tunes.
May was a bumper crop of powerful, rich music, so keep scrolling to discover your new favorites!
- Secret Emchy Society (Gold Country ~ Country Gold) — [”Rye Whiskey Baby”] The first lady of queer country music does it again with Gold Country ~ Country Gold. (PS — You can read more about how the album came to be when you subscribe to the Rainbow Rodeo newsletter!) The album finds the band with a rich, mature sound — the band has never sounded more confident. The album explores the gamut of classic country sounds, from honky tonk to outlaw to Western swing, there’s something to tickle your fancy here.
- Nate Bergman (Metaphysical Change) — A powerful and muscular album, Bergman does a bit of a 180 by flexing his muscles with ominous metal-inspired blues before ending things on a lighter, more soul-inflected note. There’s no debate about his guitar chops, yet the lyrics are where it’s at here. Bergman can write an ode to the highway with the best of ‘em, a soaring love song, and political jeremiad the likes of the Old Testament while keeping it all in stride.
- Jess Jocoy (Let There Be No Despair) — I think of Jess Jocoy as a positive songwriter, as can be seen from the album’s title; rather than decrying the state of the world, she’s more likely to illustrate heartbreak and regret through storytelling. I was pleasantly surprised by much of the album’s darker tone, particularly “Living in a Dying Town.” The ship rights itself, but this album sees Jocoy covering new ground and more ambitious arrangements — and she’s only improving on a good thing.
- Sylvia Rose Novak (A Miss/ A Masterpiece) — This one’s my album of the month. Novak has completely reinvented themself and embraced a newfound confidence on A Miss/A Masterpiece. Not that I didn’t love her heavy Americana before, but this album is all rock’n’roll — featuring a strong undercurrent of ‘90s alt-rock and 2000s emo, A Miss/A Masterpiece is a piercing roar right out the gate: a roar that is at times empowering, at times furious, at times inchoate with a sense of loss and confusion. But all of it is, as the title suggests, a masterpiece.
- Amanda Rheaume (The Spaces in Between) — I was first tipped off to Rheaume’s album by Matt Wickstrom from The Boot. The album is a masterful exploration of Native identity and the contradictions of white supremacist (ie American) culture. Rheaume is Métis 2SLGBTQ+, experiences that deeply inform the songs here. The album is interspersed with dialogue from her mentor, Tony Belcourt, which contextualize the songs. Rheaume’s music is light and airy, a clever contradiction with the weightiness of her subject. But that makes her exhortations of self-love and activism all the more stirring.
- Jess Harp (Jessy Baby Forever) — Jess Harp’s stunning voice will send you places. On Jessy Baby Forever, we’re treated to a swirling mass of shoegaze rock and ethereal vocals. Harp’s youth in choir has paid off — though their gutwrenching lyrics suggest that’s the only benefit from a youth spent in Church. To enter Harp’s world is one of sharp dualities: lilting, lacey indie rock arrangements flow around tales of disconnection and grief. But it’s all worth it to experience Harp’s angelic tones.
- Lily Henley (Oras Dezaoradas) — Fiddler Lily Henley brings Sephardic Jewish music to life on Oras Dezaoradas, a combination of original songs and classics. The Sephardic community is comprised of the descendants of the expulsion from Spain during the Spanish Inquisition — many of whom fled to the Middle East. Paris is now one of the largest hubs of Sephardic Jews, and that’s where Henley went to record the album. Surrounded by those who understood the lyrics and emotional depths of the songs — traditionally sung by women — Oras Dezaoradas is imbued with warmth and joy. (PS — you will probably see it on an upcoming edition of my Jewish Country music playlist.)
- Pete Mancini (Killing the Old Ways) — I already wrote the album up in April but it hit streaming in May. The TL;DR is this is Mancini’s best album yet, with a clear focus on the source of his trademark melancholia. (Hint: it’s neoliberalism, white supremacy, and the hypocrisy of what we were taught about society.) Killing the Old Ways rocks hard, too — a sort of country meets power pop with an angry glint in the eye.
- Justin Hiltner and Jon Weisberger (Room at the Table) — You are probably most familiar with Justin as the guy who recorded a queer interpretation of Dolly Parton’s “Silver Dagger” on the Dolly Parton’s America podcast. Justin is a powerful songwriter in his own right as well. Hiltner and Weisberger’s latest project merges the modern with the traditional, an EP of four original bluegrass gospel songs and two of their own interpretations of traditional hymns. I’m Jewish so I can’t tell which are the traditional ones, but they all sounded delightfully timeless to me. Hiltner and Weisberger place an emphasis on ensuring that bluegrass is for everybody, and with the warmth and power of Room at the Table, the invitation is easy to accept.
- Brivele (What Joy Is Yours) — Radical Yiddish folk trio Brivele have done it again with their new EP. My DuoLingo Yiddish lessons haven’t gotten me to the point where I can understand the lyrics, but, helpfully, the trio include English translations in some of their performances. It’s not needed, though, as the striving for a better world rings true no matter what the language is. The trio have never sounded as good as they do here, with rich strings supporting their inseparable harmonies.
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