I almost, ALMOST, got mad enough to rattle off 1000 words about the latest bad, neo-confederate, obviously astroturfed, hit song/political hatchet by that doofy feller from Virginia. But then, Zach Bryan released a sixteen-song LP. I thought to myself, why continue to amplify what those rich men north of Richmond want me to amplify to serve their disingenuous cause(s)? No, we are here to talk about Zach Bryan’s near perfect songwriting over 54 minutes, with guest appearances from Kacey Musgraves, the Lumineers, and the underrated (and gorgeous) Sierra Ferrell.
You may have heard of Zach Bryan from his previous efforts, all of them good, and because his songwriting is top tier. He does not need a workshop of failed English majors working for some money-grubbing Nashville label to write his songs for him. He is also a Navy veteran and has gone on record discussing how much he hates Ticketmaster and their exorbitant pricing scheme(s). His songwriting chops put him near Jason Isbell level, but without all the smarmy self-righteous personality traits. WHAT CAN’T HE DO?
Since this self-titled album was released on August 25, I have had it on nonstop rotation, figurative rotation since we live in the age of streaming. My favorite part about it is how nearly every song relates to almost every heartbreaking thing that has ever happened to me. In my whole life. Good songs will do that to ya, man. Now that kind of description may seem ham-fisted, overwrought, maybe a bit trite, but I challenge you to listen through the whole LP once without feeling the same way about at least one of the songs. Like Don Draper once said, “Nostalgia–it’s delicate, but potent.”
The album opens with a poem, aptly titled “Fear and Friday’s (Poem).” It’s tone sets the mood for the entire album. As I mentioned before, the songs induced several deep, nostalgic, flashbacks for me. It could be that the songs are like horoscopes, vague in their description so much so that you can relate anything to the words contained therein. Nevertheless, that is the power of a good song, or horoscope, if you’re into such things.
Anyway, in this poem he describes, “Fear and Friday’s have and awful lot in common/They’re overdone, and glorified, and they always leave you wantin'”. The sentiment is somewhat elaborated on in the track entitled “Fear and Friday’s” later on in the album. Many of these songs are pretty raw with light instrumentation. Bryan launched himself to where he is today by playing his acoustic guitar on YouTube–sometimes whilst on active duty in the Navy. However, there are a few honky-tonk laden rockers on there too. Also, don’t sleep on the various collaborations on here, “Holy Roller” with Sierra Farrell is probably my favorite followed closely by “Hey Driver” featuring The War and Treaty.
Give it a listen for yourself. The sky is the limit for young Zach Bryan. Here’s to hoping he keeps churning out excellent songs month after month and year after year.
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