by Libby Veatch
The first thing I will say about this album is that it is an absolute joy to listen to. To me, it feels like summer afternoons walking around with friends, enjoying the fresh air, and popping into your favorite vinyl store. The modernized Bob Dylan sound combined with a bit of indie guitars, all complete with a harmonica here and there instantly transports you to your happy place.
The album opens with “I Cannot Care,” a song about reflecting on life and relationships and reminiscing on how simple life is when you’re young, even if you think those problems would be the worst you’d ever face. It’s a song about letting go and living without a care because we only get one life. That theme seems to carry out through the entirety of the album, but there’s also an underlying tale that tells the listener to keep fighting all the battles we face in life, such as the case with the song “Solo.” A personal favorite is a single from this album “Sweet Misery.” This song is about life being a little different than you expected it to be, but again, fighting the urge to wallow in self-pity and not allowing misery to get to you, rather just accepting this life as it is and taking the good with the bad.
Anyone who is a fan of Bob Dylan, William Clark Green, or John Prine would definitely be a fan of this album. In fact, Burt is signed to John Prine’s label “Oh Boy Records.” While that is the main target audience of this album, I think that everyone can find something to like in this album. If you pay more attention to music, there’s a lot to find in here between the guitar riffs and subtle drums that serve to move the song along. If you’re more of a lyrics person, this album places a lot of focus on songwriting and worldbuilding in each song and is one you can listen to multiple times and still find new meaning in. If I were to put in my personal opinion, this is one of my favorite albums I’ve reviewed so far and have recommended it to a lot of people in my life.
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