Dick Stusso’s sophomore work, In Heaven, is an album faithfully committed to coming face-to-face with failure and the self. There’s nothing the blues do better than self-pity, but there is something about Stusso’s particular country brand that gives a sense of hope and resilience. He’s taken the time to mature beyond his 2015 debut album, Nashville Dreams / Sings the Blues (which sounds like he’s running for mayor of Reverb City, USA, under the slogan “I’m like if T-Rex was an Elvis impersonator”), by allowing himself the same emotional range as his first album, but keeping it in check with the kind of reason and direction only time and experience can afford. It also helps that he moved his recording operations from what sounded like the inside of a tin can to an old church, giving it the feel that, boy, you really are in heaven.
While possibly not an album that absolutely needs to be listened to in its entirety, it is definitely an album that is full of individual gems one might fixate on when going through a hard time in life, or when needing some affirmation that it’s OK to be sad as long as you’re a little angry about it, too. Because it’s lacking a bit in regards to having a defined narrative, it feels more natural to evaluate the album as moments of individual crossings between his heart and his talent. It kicks off with such a solid intro in “Well Acquainted”, and you find the same emotion and longing in the later track, “Getting Loose”. A favorite, “The Bullshit Century Pt. 1” (the prequel to a song off of his first album), has so much soul in it, it feels like you’ve walked into a defected Southern Baptist’s dream. The album ends with its namesake, “In Heaven”, a beautifully honest way to say “goodbye” to just about anyone or anything. Ultimately, he does best when he’s capitalizing on his ability to weave in and out of moods in his uniquely organic way, showing that he has an obvious grasp of what it is he’s trying to say and how he wants us to feel about it.
Maybe it’s my West Texas blood that has hardened me to up and coming country acts, thinking that I have some divine right to decide who is allowed to croon and with what amount of twang and at what time, but there’s nothing in me that wants Stusso to stop. Rather, I want for him to take even more time developing his odd combination of anger/resolve/hopefulness further, allowing me more opportunities to drive around the Loop and sing along. With that being said, there are a couple of tracks that might not move you immediately, but definitely have the potential to creep into your heart. Overall, this is a great sophomore album, showing the audience that he’s prepared to make driven music that we can all benefit from.
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