Rachael Sage -- Canopy
Rachael Sage's Canopy is exactly the album we need when we need it: a reminder of what love looks like in every facet of life.
If I enjoyed love songs, I probably wouldn't be in the country music business. I need my music to be thoughtful, depressing, anguished – the sad bastard song club that helps me feel less alone in my misanthropy. Most love songs are sticky sweet, finding that moment that's the first hit of dopamine, that exciting discovery that often turns sour, paving the way for that perfect tear-in-your-beer country ballad. Or, my defenses can be obliterated with a blast of sunshine from Rachael Sage's Canopy, an album that teaches us what real, mature love feels like.
"Just Enough" embraces us from the very first flourish with its confident groove and Sage's grounded performance that lands somewhere between the urgency of new love and the humility of gratitude. The songs draws upon goofy metaphors – comparing love to a kid on a Ferris wheel – with the every acts that transform romance into a committed relationship, making the line "every time you erase my shame/I feel loved" hit like a ton of (gentle) bricks.
Similarly, "Belong to You" is a moving vow to remain open and vulnerable in a relationship. The string section creates a sense of gravitas that matches the momentousness of what that commitment actually means. These songs would be meaningful on their own, but taking into account Sage's struggle with cancer, her vow "to be strong for you" takes on new weight. When you've had to re-evaluate everything in your life, I imagine, it's more important than ever to speak the unspoken.
For Canopy, these conceptions of love are not just about romantic dyads. "The Best Version," delivered in hushed tones, urges the listener to fully embrace themselves. Meanwhile, "Canopy" and "Kill the Clock" ask us to spread our compassion towards all of humanity – especially now. Sage reminds us to take things in stride with a buoyant cover of Buddy Holly's "Everday" and an instrumental of "God Bless America" – though whether that track is meant to be taken as a hopeful reminder of this country's stated values or irony would seem to depend on the week's headlines.
Nevertheless, Canopy is the album we need and it arrives at exactly the right time. You will see this one again shortly in our Best Of list in January, if I have anything to do with it.
Rachael Sage – Official, Bandcamp, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Spotify
