Editor's Picks 10/2: Jude Brothers, The Male Pattern, Katie Pruitt
Every week, Rainbow Rodeo editor Rachel Cholst picks the three best queer country albums of the week. This week features sumptuous Appalachian explorations, tragicomic patriarchal characters, and a tidy little package to describe all of our messiness.
Each week, editor Rachel Cholst picks the best queer country to send you off into your weekend.
Jude Brothers – Dogwood Maiden Voyage
Jude Brothers' Dogwood Maiden Voyage is nothing short of a masterpiece. The album delves into traditional Appalachian music, with Brothers' wide-ranging poetry a dense thicket that yields gems of discovery no matter how many times you listen. "Handsome Little Fountains & Ancient Little Mountains" plunges us into Brothers' world, where ageless spirits recount vignettes of their time on earth. The eerie a cappella of "Snake & Sword" contrasts sharply with the warmth of the string arrangements on "I'm Gonna Build a Life I Don't Wanna Escape From & It's Gonna Be Beautiful." This album is nothing less than sumptuous, with individual lines jumping out depending on the listener's mood: a Rorschach test of empathy, love, a passion for living and everything that comes along with it. It's one of the best Americana albums this year.
The Male Pattern – I Was Shot in the Heart!
With I Was Shot in the Heart!, The Male Pattern (aka writer Will Schwartz) asks the question we're too scared to answer: where do all of these sad loser guys come from? Schwartz presents us with a portrait of one of them – a suburban guy with a vivid imagination, a raging pill problem, and nothing left to lose. Listeners will be rewarded with repeat listens as we learn how this guy's life falls apart and ends in a predictable manner. Schwartz's "everyman" isn't necessarily someone you care about, but you do feel a little bad for. As humorous as the story is, it does beg the question – can anyone avert the tragedy of patriarchy?
Katie Pruitt – Fools For the Fleeting
How does love work in an age of terror? How does it even work in normal times? Katie Pruitt examines this on Fools For the Fleeting, both a breakup album and a polemic. Pruitt is deft at writing vulnerable songs...but this is the first time she's been pissed off. "Matching Tattoos" is a curt punctuation mark to a painful breakup, while "The Aftermath" illustrates how the personal and political weave together. "Little Boxes" looks into our relationship with technology and the ways it obfuscates what we're really looking for: genuine connection. And that need brings us back to new love with the title track – why do we dive headlong into something that could cause us pain? And should we just try anyway? Fools For the Fleeting is a tidy package that describes all of our messiness – a bracing fall breeze as we head into winter.
