come anticipate Miranda Lambert's new double album The Weight of These Wings

oh sorry, xp ... should've read the "posted since" more closely

I respect The Marfa Tapes as demos for Palomino but I haven't listened to it since May 2021 and probably won't go back.

marfa tape - surely technically imperfect campfire harmonies are the whole point imo? the crackle of the fire or the wind in the microphone, shuffles & sniffles all part of the vibe

Yeah, its twilight-to-evening presence sneaks up on me every time, like a great one-off bootleg---think I'll scoop up that and all the Pistol Annies albums, incl. the xmas, and my imaginary friend The Great Lost Pistol Annies Album, from their solo joints etc.---and go tottering off---

But OK speaking of solo joints here are some, from my Nash Scene ballots, show previews etc over the years:

Miranda Lambert
Thursday @Celeste
When tiny blonde Miranda Lambert scored her first country hit by applying “Kerosene” to a cheatin’ boyfriend, the even-cuter-when-she’s mad factor promised to get out of hand. But ”Kerosene,” “Gunpowder And Lead” and “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” gain more credibility as album tracks: tabloid-fueled or not, they’re as truly expressive as any other pages from the diary of a frustrated, sleeplessly dreaming small-town girl. Speaking of fuel, be sure to check the re-run of Lambert’s “Austin City Limits” set, where she and her band leave the somewhut more jaded or just plain tahred Gretchen Wilson’s crew in the dust.

Miranda Lambert
Friday @ Nationwide Arena

Young country star Miranda Lambert’s current album, “Revolution”, cranks up and orbits old folk star John Prine’s “That’s The Way The World Goes Round.” She’s found her own sharp-eyed stoicism, just naturally igniting when rubbed the wrong way too hard. Some say she rocks too hard for country, but Lambert’s “Only Prettier” draws on the droll, drawled comic zingers of honky tonk, and she thoughtfully, tunefully re-affirms her roots. It helps that her father’s an ace guitar picker, and both parents are also private detectives, specializing in marital disputes.

Miranda Lambert, Platinum: The winter of her discontent, and not just a diva's hissy fit. Oh yeah, when she stresses about being upstaged by her big loud stupid TV star husband (as if trying to maintain your hard-won status as a female star in NashVegas---having started as third-place finalist on TV's historic Nashville Star, then: gaining foothold via persona of cute-when-she's mad, eggsy gun-freak/pyro---now: vs. electro-bro chart toppers wasn't enough) we're perfectly cued to respond, "Oh no, Miranda, you're Elvis, he's Priscilla!" But she manages even that obvious move really well, ditto sassing us 'bout can't have a ride in my little red wagon---cause it's ALL MESSED UP. That's the way she really feels, pretty sure; she's not just playing hard to get, she is hard to get, hard to get a grip on, hard to accept, in her own view. Which is also true in the hinge track (getting even more relatable, as the kids say), where she doesn't wanna catch herself in the mirror, maybe looking like her Momma, the loved opponent who taught her to clean up this "Bathroom Sink," this microcosm of messy life itself. But she does go out with Little Big Town, getting relatable as hell on the bro and sis Saturday night parking lot circuit: "Smokin' and drinkin thinkin' bout the one that GOT AWAY," hell yeah, damn! Overall, the country equivalent of Beyonce's s/t Platinum Edition.

Prob be some argument, but to me, for now (especially with some of the guitars on relative mainstreamer Miranda Lambert's The Weight of These Wings is not that far from the more consistently "out" sounds of Lucinda Williams and cookin' E. Cook), this is a country album: the pitch and cadence of her voice, the turns of phrases, as written and sung, guide and shadow the grooves, bringing out the bluesy elements of crossroads sounds, without trying to pretend they're pre-digital; the subject matter, layers of atmospheric consistency---the fixations of an addict, recovering enough for perspective on same---though getting the fix, "getting straight," as they used to say, can provide enough detachment for moments of insight even inside the thing, as "Dharma Gate" and others suggest---all merge with certain classic themes of country, even if she's not meditating on a shot glass all of the time.

From a later online discussion:
Going for what I called her "sonic grid"---that dark, spare, hard-edged but flexible framework for the throughline of her narrative themes---has some of the same appeal as Stapleton and Eric Church's recent albums, something of a Jamey Johnson atmosphere too, but I doubt that she expects as much radio play as they've gotten. The main challenge is writing about this stuff at all, without becoming too dependent on lurid imagery or therapyspeak, or seeming evasive. Her current solution seems to be just to begin in the middle, to tell it like she might have told it then, in her most self-aware, lucid and candid moments. And maybe she's still in the middle of it, for all we know--but I have the impression (because the self-awareness etc is so sustained here) that she's been through some kind of therapy, with whatever lapses experienced or still possible, and of course the idea is to know yourself to be a recovering addict, present tense, no matter how long you've been sober. So, while these songs may not be the deepest, as Edd Hurt prev. mentioned, this is how far she's gotten writing-wise (with anything she'd want to show us now, at least).

Sorry! I was hewing too close to Ctrl + Search in the personal archive, so that Weight mention was really just in the middle of scribble about Elizabeth Cook's also badass Exodus of Venus.

Ctrl + F search, that is.

https://www.vulture.com/2020/11/cmas-2020-miranda-lambert-entertainer-year-essay.html

... and same writer has an interview with Miranda out today: https://www.vulture.com/2022/09/miranda-lambert-vegas-best-worst-music.html

i love this

I, for a while, did this set where I would end with a fiery one and then go down and do a couple ballads, like “House That Built Me” and “Dark Bars.” I had to switch it, because I would do “Mama’s” before “House That Built Me,” and always girls would start fighting in the front row, and then they’d still be fighting through my ballad. And I’m like, All right, we’re going to have to put “House That Built Me” somewhere else because they don’t get over it quick enough.

she’s right that “dead flowers” is one of her best songs

i love it so much

Also I love this bit about "The House That Built Me":

"I’m so thankful for that song. I sing it every night and I watch people cry. I cry once a tour, at least — especially if I’m playing in Dallas, because my family’s there. I think any songwriter that you ask right now, they have that on their top-ten list of songs they wish they’d written. It’s just so vivid, and parts of it are part of all of our childhood. But my guitar player for so long, who I lost this year, Scotty Wray — the first time he heard it, I was saying, “Isn’t this just everyone’s story?” He goes, “No. I wish I had that house. I wish that was my story.” I’d never thought about it like that. There’s a whole different meaning when you listen to it from someone that didn’t have that. It made me cry when he said that. I think that’s the power of “The House That Built Me.” It brings out so much emotion."

To think she didn't enjoy a country smash until 2010 and "The House That Built Me." Radio didn't know what to do with her.

I wrote here at the time that Revolution side one was her most rockin' side ever.

good list, jon_oh! Here's mine today - no doubt it'll be a bit different tomorrow.

Tier 1
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Platinum
The Weight of These Wings
Hell on Heels
Kerosene

Tier 2
Wildcard
Palomino
The Marfa Tapes
Interstate Gospel
Revolution

Tier 3
Annie Up
Four The Record

Re: Cultural signifiers

Yeah, "Tequila Does," coupled with some interviews she did around the same time in which she had some tone-deaf responses about being a white woman opening a Tex-Mex restaurant / tequila bar. She's shown great allyship on LGBTQ+ issues, but she really didn't seem to get it when it came to cultural appropriation. I believe Dr. Amanda Martinez, whose work is essential in the country space, did some writing about it that explains it more authoritatively.

Re: Marfa

Still a great album, for sure: Check the **** ratings for albums (9) and above in my rankdown, and those rankings are always in flux depending on what I've listened to most recently. I just don't think the actual vocal timbres of their three voices make a pleasant sound when they sing together (I also think Trisha Yearwood and Garth Brooks sound horrible together, so...), in a way that detracts at least somewhat from my enjoyment of the album.

she had some tone-deaf responses about being a white woman opening a Tex-Mex restaurant / tequila bar.

She's from Texas, where a substantial number of Tex-Mex restaurants/tequila bars are run by monied Whites under less scrutiny.

it takes all kinds of kinds iirc

Crazy Tex-Mex Girlfriend

“tequila does” def has some blatant white person in a sombrero vibes but i also think it’s a brilliant song. i like to think of “in his arms” as a companion to it

I will argue though that "To Learn Her" is not one of Wings' memorable songs.

Rightly or wrongly? It is a perfectly executed 50s throwback - not sure there's another song in her catalog like it.

The two guys on Marfa Tapes are also a big asset (I still think Ingram's "Anchor" is an amazing song). It's such a special kind of album; I'm listening to it now...

yeah its a top 3 for me

Not sure if there's supposed to be some grand revelation on my part to the statement that Miranda Lambert's from Texas, which I certainly knew? And doesn't invalidate the appropriation issues? Which is full YMMV territory for anyone's enjoyment or engagement with something.

Love the Vulture piece, particularly her "Dead Flowers" love and spot-on critique of the current state of country radio. Which, as Alfred said, never knew what to do with her.

I'm just pointing out that she probably doesn't see it as appropriation, more like a smart business move with loads of precedent. The only reason anybody cares is that she's famous in a more scrutinized field.

And besides, it's not like she's the first Country star who's had suspect/cringe/objectionable business interests.

If I may also note in her character assessment the enormous amount of work she's done (and presumably $ she's given) for animal welfare organizations, and her own Mutt Nation.

https://muttnation.com/foundation/

i don’t think we need really need to hold a trial over how problematic she is or isn’t. her songs provide for far more interesting discussion

"It All Comes Out in the Wash" is sorta a lesser variation on "We Should Be Friends," huh?

Wildcard starts out bumpy, but ends really strong...

Related, anyone read the Her Country book?

the only song on Wildcard i’m ambivalent about is “fire escape” because it’s so repetitive it sounds more like a filler song

but otherwise i enjoy Wildcard a great deal,

"Settling Down" is the catchiest song of her career. Jeez, even typing the title got it lodged in my head.

Putting aside the Tex-Mex schtick, something great about "Tequila Does" is how it's, like, a "positive" ode to booze... you know, drink responsibility and all that (and I could never handle tequila myself), but I like the idea of a drinking song that doesn't have a "dark" edge. I'm sure there are many others (esp. in country music), but they're not known to me.

(or at least paying tribute to a particular drink)

the first half of wildcard is def a bit patchy altho “mess with my head” is an incredible song, she should keep writing songs that sound like the cars. it gets better starting with “bluebird” — one of her best singles and which ended up being a crowning achievement for her at this stage in her career — and i’d put the final 4 songs up there w/ pretty much any stretch on any of her albums. i love the way the album slowly descends into darkness from “pretty bitchin” (i love being the subject of gossip!) to “tequila does” (no man feels better than tequila!) to “track record” (i recklessly pursue unhealthy relationships) to “dark bars” (here i am in my happy place, hanging out with degenerate alcoholics)

worth noting that "Bluebird" was her biggest country hit in years

"Life's pretty good if you live it" (from "Pretty Bitchin'") is like one of those all-time great song lines.

i love the first verse or “bluebird” so much… “i turn pages all the time / don’t like where i’m at, 34 was bad / so i just turn 35”

"Strange" has been largely DOA at radio, which has surprised me. Not sure if the recurrent play for "Drunk And I Don't Wanna Go Home" w Elle King (also a great single) is hurting it, but it had an impact date back in July and hasn't yet cracked the t40. Would love to see "Waxahachie" or "Geraldene" get tagged as single, but I also respect her DGAF attitude to such things.

Yeah in my head Wildcard is always just like “White Trash” and “It All Comes Out…” and “Way Too Pretty….” and then I listen to it again and get totally blown away by the last third each time.

"Dark Bars" is scary. It's like not-quite-middle-aged Dylan looking ahead 20 years.

It reminds me of “The Last Time I Saw Richard” and not just because of the setting.

"Track Record" is one of my all time favorite Miranda songs.

And it's totally buried on Wildcard, surrounded by Pretty Bitchin' and Tequila Does and Dark Bars ... just sitting there in the middle being more understated and perfect.

Dark Bars might be my favorite off Wildcard … that chorus gives me goosebumps “I’m not in paaaaaiiin / I’m not on piiiillls”

i love all her songs about bars, dare I say she has a Haggard-esque knack for capturing the sad specifics of booze & loneliness in crowded places & making them still weirdly beautiful

Yep. She covered "Misery and Gin."

yes and "ugly lights"

sorry lol that was in support of what VG said about her bar songs.